Playing House
by BlackHairedHunter997
Summary: Bella Swan and Edward Cullen get paired up for their health class project. They experience the married life and the hardships of being a parent. Can they ace this project or will they be overwhelmed by parenthood? It's time to play house. AH Canon couples
1. Health Class

_**A/N: This is my first fanfiction so I hope you like it!**_

**_Disclaimer: The characters belong to Stephenie Meyer._**

**Playing House**

**Chapter One: Health Class**

There were many shuffling feet as the junior and senior class was called to the gymnasium for our health class.

The principal was already in the middle of the court holding a microphone with some of the hair on his balding head gelled back making his wide forehead more prominent with the oil heavily coating it, making it shine. I was seated at the very back and I watched as the other students filed in chattering nonstop about their trivial social lives.

I pulled out my book to busy myself while waiting for the announcements to start instead of people watching. There's nothing else I could do and there was no one that I could talk to since I was a very shy person and my mother often wondered why, since I am very outspoken about my opinions at home. I would often retort to my mom that it was my home and they knew me ever since I was a baby- hell, since the moment I was born.

I opened the book at the part where I left off and started reading. I was so intent on the book that I almost didn't hear the principal's order to settle down and listen.

"Now," he sighed, "as you all know, there have been an increase in the number of teenagers who get pregnant because of the lack of safety precautions. So, the administration would like to impose upon everyone the dangers of sexual intercourse." He cleared his throat to silence the sudden outburst of laughs. It took him at least a full two minutes to get everyone to quiet down all the while giving the other stubborn jocks a death glare and a promise of two weeks detention if they don't stop their snickering.

That shut them up pretty quick.

"We have decided that all of you will need to learn this important lesson and to be prepared for the future in case you get your little bundle of joys a little early. I have already talked to your health class teachers and this project will count as _ninety percent _of your grade in health. So please cooperate and do your best. I'm going to leave you all now to Mrs. Bryans for you project. Have a good day and I would like to add that your parents are already informed of the project and will be making sure that _every one _of you will be doing your projects." He handed the mic to a middle aged woman who looked to be in her early forties with shoulder length dirty blond hair and strict looking face. They exchanged a few words and Mr. Greene motioned for her to get going and explain the assignment.

"As our principal, Mr. Greene, has announced, every one of you will be participating in a project that can help you throughout the hardships of being a parent early in your life. We are doing this to prepare you because there are many teenagers who are being impregnated and who do not even know what to do with their child once he is born. You cannot just depend on your parents for everything, which is why in this project you will need to get a job, with the assistance of the school of course, and you will have to pretend to get married today in this gymnasium with the whole junior and senior class as your witnesses."

There was uproar among the students. Waves of disapproval were coming from every direction while some of the female population was emanating hope and it could be easily deduced that it was for a certain Cullen sibling.

The Cullens were a group of five people who were popular without even trying. Only three of them actually bear the surname 'Cullen'. The two blondes, Rosalie and Jasper Hale, were adopted when their parents died in a fire. The two of them were over at the Cullen house at the time playing with the Cullen children when the fire started. Esme and Carlisle Cullen were good friends with Mr. and Mrs. Hale. They adopted the two orphans when they found out that the two did not have any family left. Since then, they have been like a family and stuck together throughout everything.

The three Cullens were Emmett, Edward and Alice. They were actually triplets as Rosalie and Jasper were twins. Emmett was the big burly dude with black curly hair. He was going out with Rosalie, the gorgeous blonde who looked like a supermodel with her great body that had curves in all the right places. She was every guy's fantasy in Forks High School and every girl wanted to be her. Alice Cullen was a pixie like brunette that had a skip in her step every time you see her. She was always very happy and was very graceful in her movements. She looked like she always dances instead of walk into a room. She is going out with Jasper Hale. Jasper is almost as tall as Emmett's 6'4 height and had a leaner build than him. He was always calm which was good because it balances out his girlfriend's energetic personality.

The last of their group is Edward Cullen. Every girl wanted him and every guy wanted to be him. He had a mop of bronze hair and had the same green eyes as his twin siblings. He was as tall as Jasper and had a leaner build compared to his brothers that looked like he was made for speed. He was very quiet but was very active in school. He joined many extra curricular activities and was in the football team with his brothers. He was the student body president and was part of the debate club. Like him, his siblings were very active though not as active as he is. Even though they were very popular, they were still very nice and didn't pick on other students and kept to themselves all the time.

"As I was saying," Mrs. Bryans continued in a firm voice that drowned out the protests of the other students, "you will get a job and get married. Along with it, you will also be taking care of a baby. At first the women will have fake bellies that will help them experience what a real pregnant woman feels. The women can only take them off when they take a shower. To make it interesting, they will have to act like real pregnant women. They will have cravings; they can be hormonal just so that the male partners will feel the pressure of taking care of a pregnant woman. After a week, they will be allowed to take off the fake belly and a baby will be handed to the partners. It's not real but it is a kind of robot baby. It looks like a real baby. It acts like a real baby and has the same urges that babies have. It can cry, fart, poop and it has a device programmed into it that will record what you are doing. It will record any case of man handling so I advice that you take good care of your babies. The project lasts for a period of six weeks. For the first two weeks, you will act like a married couple and do what married couples do and no, it does not require you to have intercourse with your partner but if you want to I guess we cannot stop you. After that, the women will be wearing the fake bellies and I would like to advice to all you girls to milk it for what it's worth. It's not everyday you get to boss around men." She winked and grinned at the girls.

"Then you will be taking care of your babies for two weeks and on the last week, an orphan will be assigned as your child and you will take care of him. We have already assigned partners for each of you so when I call your names please go down here for your wedding."

She started the roll call with the juniors and I got lost in my thoughts for a moment. I watched the 'weddings' and waited for the senior class' turn.

I was pretty agitated and shifted in my seat a lot so I got out my book and lost myself in it. It was a fascinating book about a girl's fight for survival in an arena of bloodshed. I was at the part where she was in a cave with another tribute that came from the same district that she did. I was so engrossed in the book I was reading that I was startled when Mrs. Bryans called my name and I dropped the book I was holding.

The guy next to me snickered and coughed, 'nerd' while giving his friend a high five. I stowed my book in my bag and descended the stairs and distinctly heard Mrs. Bryans call out my partner as, _"Edward Cullen"._ I nearly tripped when she announced that he will be my partner. There was a lot of murmuring in the gym and a handful of disappointed groans.

"_Her?"_ some of the girls said with resentment in their voices.

"_But why her? Couldn't they at least pick someone who has a sense of style? At least that way Eddie won't need to worry about looking bad with her standing next to him." _A blond junior said as I passed her.

"_Well, at least this way we will like, have no problem with Eddie finding her attractive. I mean look at me and look at her. Such a big difference, right?" _Her friend said in an annoying nasal voice.

I reached the center of the court and I could feel a lot of glares burning a hole in my hoodie.

I looked at Mrs. Bryans and she gave me a meaningful smile. I could read the pity clearly written in her eyes but couldn't quite place another emotion in them. Is it amusement? I don't know. It just looked like she knew something I didn't. I shook my head and stored the thought for later. I could feel somebody else standing next to me and looked up to see a pair of emerald green eyes staring back at me. He was smiling apologetically and I blushed.

Mrs. Bryans cleared her throat to get our attention and asked us to face her. And so the wedding commenced. I zoned out for a moment, thinking about my current predicament. I seem to be doing that a lot today. I was worried about what would happen in the succeeding weeks. I was never really good at conversing with other people and obviously, I would need to do just that to be able to communicate with him. Which house would we be staying at? Naturally, a supposed married couple would live in the same house. He also has siblings. Will I be friends with them? Will they even like me? Will he even like me? So many questions were going around in my head. I snapped out of my internal musings when it was time to say the 'I do's'.

"Do you, Isabella Marie Swan, take Edward Anthony Cullen as your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, for richer and for poorer, in sickness and in health as long as you both shall do this project?" Mrs. Bryans said in a loud, clear voice that echoed through the walls.

"Uh, I do." I answered softly while blushing profusely. I looked at Edward and he was grinning crookedly. I've never seen him grin before and I was taken aback by how much it affected me. I felt as if I was going to melt through the floor by just looking at his grin.

Mrs. Bryans turned to him and asked the same thing. "Do you, Edward Anthony Cullen, take Isabella Marie Swan as your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, for richer and for poorer, in sickness and in health as long as you both shall do this project?"

"I do." He answered with much more confidence than I had. I don't know why but a part of me was happy to hear him say those words and another part of me longed for him to say that in circumstances that were not created by the school and not fake. I quickly caught myself and I berated my mind for even thinking of those things.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride." Mrs. Bryans announced.

_What? Did she just say 'kiss the bride'? I didn't know that we needed to do that! Ugh! Way to go Swan! You should have listened in the first place! _I panicked internally. I looked at Edward and was frozen as he lowered his head to kiss me. I was breathing heavily from panic and my brain was not functioning very well. Luckily, Edward kissed me on both cheeks and saved me from fainting.

I sighed but was a little disappointed. We both signed a document that newlyweds were supposed to sign and went back to our seats. I received a lot of glares from the female population so I pulled my hood up to hide my face from their eyes. I was blushing very badly and I watched as the last couples were wed. After that Mrs. Bryans made some other announcements and reminders for everyone.

"You and your partner should coordinate about which house you will be living in. The two of you will need to be spending your time with each other as newlyweds. Both will sleep in the same room and in the same bed but no fooling around people," she said with a stern glare directed at everyone.

"You will both be assigned your jobs next week so that you can use the first week as your getting to know each other week. The first week starts today so coordinate as soon as possible because you will need to sleep in the same house. Pack your bags for today and live the married life. Oh and before I forget, you will also write a 20 page essay on what you think about the project. You can write the things that you've learned and the moments you enjoyed, I don't really care but please no crude language. Okay, so good luck and you are dismissed." Mrs. Bryans smiled.

Everyone rose from their seats and went to their partners to coordinate with each other. I picked up my backpack and made my way to find where Edward was sitting but he was nowhere to be found. I looked around and finally decided to just go to my locker, put away my things and search for him in the parking lot instead.

I weaved my way through the sea of people and walked out the doors into the hallway. Some guy bumped into me and didn't even apologize as I fell on the ground. _Ouch. Man that hurt! Was I really that invisible? _I thought as I rubbed my shoulder.

I got up from my spot on the floor and made my way to my locker being extra careful not to get rammed by someone again. I deposited my things inside and shut my locker with a little too much force than necessary as some passers by turned to look at me. I blushed madly and ducked my head to hide my face.

I arrived at the parking lot and searched around for Edward's Volvo. It was nowhere to be found. _Now what? Where the hell am I supposed to go now? Well, I suppose the teachers won't notice that we didn't coordinate. Oh man! Why do these things keep happening to me? Why? I guess I'll just look for him tomorrow then. _I thought with resignation. I jumped up on my truck and drove home.

I noticed unfamiliar cars parked in the driveway and wondered who could be visiting. I reached for my backpack on the passenger seat and hopped down from my truck and walked to the front porch.

I went inside and shouted, "Mom! I'm home!"

"We're in the living room honey! Come and greet our guests!" Mom shouted back. I walked to the living room and froze in the doorway.

"Bella these are the Cullens. I'm sure you know them. You go to school with their children, right?" Mom asked.

"Uhh, yeah. I, uhh, good afternoon Mr. and Mrs. Cullen. Uh, good afternoon Emmett, Rosalie, Jasper, Alice and Edward." I greeted them while I blushed.

"Oh dear please call me Esme," said the woman with caramel colored hair and vivid green eyes.

"Call me Carlisle," added the blond man sitting next to her.

"Okay." I replied in a meek voice.

I stood in the doorway awkwardly as I looked around the room. The Cullen children were sitting on the couch while their parents sat on the loveseat. My parents were sitting on both armchairs which left me nowhere to sit.

I rocked back on my heels and blew out a gust of air. "So, I guess I'll just cook dinner then. Later." I waved and bolted out of there.

I ran up to my room and changed clothes. I wore a dark blue plaid shirt with some dark wash skinny jeans. I threw my hair up in a half ponytail with my bangs swept to the side. I grabbed my iPod and went down to the kitchen to cook our meal.

I totally forgot the conversation I had with my mother the other night. She told me that we will have guests over and it completely passed my mind. She sometimes likes to have people over for no apparent reason. Maybe she was glad of the company since dad was at work and I was at school which left her alone in the house.

I grabbed the materials I needed for the meal I was cooking and immediately started work. I was listening to my iPod as I prepared our meal that I didn't notice an audience gathering in the doorway to watch me cook. I was too busy cooking and was working very fast that I almost looked like a professional chef.

The song I was listening to ended as I turned off the fire on the stove and waited for the lasagna in the oven to be finished. I reached up in the cupboards to get the plates and set them on the counter. I put the food in the plates when the lasagna was done and I put them all on the island.

I have to say that I was proud of myself for making so many meals in such a limited amount of time. Good thing I baked a cake yesterday and I had some dessert on the refrigerator or else we would not be eating some delicious dessert.

I smiled to myself in satisfaction and turned off my iPod. Then I heard clapping from the doorway.

_Huh? Am I hearing that in my head? _I thought.

I turned around and saw everybody in the doorway watching me. Some of the Cullens had their mouths open while my parents were smiling proudly at me. I blushed and asked them, "How long have you exactly been watching?"

"We just got here a while ago." My dad grinned. "It's okay. No reason to be embarrassed. We're actually very impressed." He continued.

"Your husband will be a very lucky man." Carlisle complimented me.

Here I thought I couldn't get any redder. I was so wrong.

"Hey Edward! You must be lucky then! Having a wife that can cook you mouthwatering meals. Mmm-hmm-hmm." Emmett smacked his lips.

"What are you talking about?" My mom asked curiously. She was looking at me with a questioning expression.

"Carlisle said that Bella's husband was a very lucky man right? So I said, 'Edward must have been lucky'. You did get the letters from our principal that we will have a health project right?"Emmett asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Yes. We were informed of the project that your principal cooked up. But what does it have to do with this? And please just cut to the chase already. We don't need any of your suspense." Carlisle replied.

"Fine then. Well earlier today Mrs. Bryans, our health teacher, announced the pairings. And guess who little Eddie got as a partner…" He trailed off, grinning wickedly.

"Oh my goodness! Really? Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Esme squealed loudly and almost _skipped _in glee. She was wearing a very excited expression and looked like she will burst any second! For a moment there, I could see the resemblance between her and Alice.

"Are we missing something…?" My mom asked with a confused expression on her face.

"Bella and Edward are partners for the project! Can you believe it?" Esme almost screamed in giddiness. I counted to five in my head and… cue my mother's scream.

"Aaahhhhh! That is so great! Good thing my daughter didn't get paired up with a jerk! At least I know who his family is. And he is good looking too so all I have to say is, SCORE!" My mom babbled uncontrollably. By now I had my very red face in my hands and I felt as if I would die from embarrassment.

"MOM! Will you _please _stop that! That is really embarrassing!" My voice was muffled because of my hands covering my face.

Some of the Cullens were laughing and I could hear my father's chuckles in the background. I was humiliated beyond belief and they had to make it worse by laughing at me?

"And the rest of you SHUT UP! I don't need you laughing at me and increasing my embarrassment!" I shouted as I dropped my hands from their previous position and stormed out of the room and sprinting to my bedroom upstairs.

I opened the door and slammed it behind me and locked it. I threw myself on the bed and grabbed the book that I was previously reading. I heard noises from downstairs but chose to just ignore them. _I was SO not going to go back down. I've already embarrassed myself enough for the day. _I thought to myself and continued reading my book.

I was almost at the end of the book when a knock came from the door. I closed my book and asked, "Who is it?"

"It's me, Edward. Can you please open the door so that we could talk? I just wanted to apologize for earlier. We didn't mean to make you upset." He said in a smooth voice.

I contemplated for a moment and finally decided that I have made a total ass of myself so maybe I should try to clear things up. I got up from my bed and opened the door to let him in. He took a look around the room as I resumed my earlier position in my bed. He surveyed the books in my study table as well as those in my bookshelf. "You sure do have a lot of books, don't you?" He commented and I took it as a rhetorical question.

"So… What do you want to talk about?" I asked him. I shifted uncomfortably in my place on the bed. I was a little self conscious in seeing him inspecting my personal belongings and I couldn't contain the blush that spread across my cheeks.

He stopped his inspection and turned on his heel to face me. "I just wanted to apologize for what happened earlier in the kitchen. I'm really sorry for laughing at you. It's just that the situation was too funny that I couldn't contain my laughter. I'm really sorry for making you embarrassed. I also came up to talk to you about the living arrangements for the project. Well… I was wondering if you would mind it if we just stayed at my house…" He looked at me questioningly and waited for me to make the decision.

I was taken aback by his suggestion. Normally, a guy would just order around the girl and state things instead of asking for their opinion. This really confirmed my assessment that Edward was a nice guy. He was brought up a gentleman.

"Well… Maybe staying at your house would be better. I think Mrs. Bryans mentioned that we needed to start the project tonight if I heard correctly."

"Yeah. So, maybe we could tell our parents later and you could ride with me to my house." He smiled.

"Okay then. So… What now?" I asked.

"Well, your mom also sent me up here to call you down. We're going to eat dinner now." He grinned crookedly.

"Yeah so, okay. Let's go then." I stood up awkwardly and followed Edward out of my room. We descended the stairs and went inside the dining room. It looked like my mom already set up the table with the food I cooked and everyone else was already seated and looked like they were waiting for us to arrive. I blushed and apologized to everyone from my outburst earlier and we all sat down to eat.

Conversation was made and everyone chatted comfortably with each other. I was pleased with the compliments that I was receiving from my cooking skills. Whenever someone would ask me a question, I nodded politely to acknowledge them and answered in a respectful manner. It was quite entertaining to say the least.

Emmett was shoveling food in his mouth like there was no tomorrow. There was even one comical moment where he attempted to speak through a mouthful of chicken and some of it hit the person sitting right in front of him. Sadly, that person was Jasper. He was seething with anger the whole time and glaring at his brother from across the table. Everyone was laughing at their crazy antics and eventually settled down and ate in silence.

When dessert was served everyone filled their faces with cake and the fruit salad that I made the other day. I was happily chewing my way through a mouthful of cake when Edward suddenly spoke up.

"I think Bella should stay at our place for a while." He stated simply. I spit out the food I was eating in surprise and it landed on the person sitting in front of me which was Edward. My eyes were as wide as saucers and the whole table burst out laughing excluding the two of us. Edward was wiping off the cake that was on his face and the corners of his lips were twitching, almost like he was fighting a smile.

"I'm so sorry! I really am! I didn't mean to spit cake on your face. I just got caught off guard when you suddenly spoke. I am so sorry. Please forgive me. I didn't mean-", I was cut off in my rambling with Edward chuckling and smiling very widely.

"It's okay Bella. Don't worry about it. You have to admit that that was hilarious! I guess I should have given you a warning first. I should have also phrased my statement better." He grinned. He looked at the parental figures and explained the situation.

Of course, my mom was all too happy to kick me out of the house. My dad didn't have objections to it maybe owing it to the fact that he didn't know that we were supposed to sleep in the same bed. Well, maybe he wouldn't get that angry if he found out. He does trust me after all and he knows that I wouldn't do anything like that. Carlisle and Esme readily agreed to the prospect of me, staying under their roof. They actually welcomed it although; I was surprised to get an excited reaction from Alice and Rosalie of all people.

"Yay! I have a new shopping buddy!" Alice sang out loud happily.

"YES! I'm free from the pixie's clutches!" Rosalie fist pumped in the air and looked like she wanted to do a happy dance.

The both of them were overjoyed that I can't help getting pretty excited myself though not on the shopping part.

After dinner, I went upstairs and packed my bags so that I can ride with the Cullens to their home. I brought with me some of my favorite books and some that I just bought. I went down the stairs, carrying my backpack and duffle bag. As I entered the hall, the Cullens were already at the front door waiting for me. Edward took both of my bags from me and insisted that he carry it despite my protests. I said my good byes to my parents and we got out and got in the cars.

I rode with Edward in his Volvo while Emmett rode with Rosalie and the rest rode with Carlisle in his black Mercedes. We sped through the roads and when I say sped, I mean literally speeding down the road at 110 mph. I was a nervous wreck throughout the ride to his house and sighed in relief when we finally reached it.

I was dumbstruck upon looking at the big white house in front of me. It could easily have been called a _mansion_. It had a wraparound porch and most of the windows weren't just windows. They were glass walls.

I'm pretty sure I had my jaw on the floor but I couldn't remember how to function properly. This really is too much shock in one day. After a couple of minutes, I finally regained control of myself and quickly snapped my mouth shut. Edward was chuckling at my reaction the whole time.

He killed the engine and got out of his side and before I could open my door, he was already there opening it for me. Yup, I was right. Definitely a gentleman.

I blushed and thanked him then I followed him inside the house. If I thought the outside was breathtaking, I would have already fainted at the lack of oxygen from just seeing the inside of the house. The interior decoration was so precise. It was magnificent, right down to the color of the carpet. I guess this is what you get for having a world renowned interior designer for a mother. Edward led me to his room as everyone else retreated to theirs. We were all tired and we said our good nights to each other while yawning.

When Edward showed me his room, I had my mouth hanging open for the umpteenth time.

It was just like any other part of the house. It was well designed and everything was in their rightful place. There was a huge wall of CDs with a complicated looking stereo that I would have been terrified to touch in fear of breaking it. In the middle of the room sat a king sized bed with a golden bedspread and some black pillows on it. Next to the glass wall was a black sofa with some throw pillows and on the opposite side of the room sat the computer table and a wooden bookshelf.

I was amazed by his room but quickly became self conscious once it dawned on me that this moment was supposed to be awkward for the both of us. But mostly on my part.

"So yeah," Edward said from beside me, looking at me on the corners of his eye. "We're supposed to sleep on the same bed and I uhh, wanted to ask you if that would be okay. I mean I could take the sofa if it makes you feel more comfortable. I mean I uhh… " He stumbled over his words.

"It's okay. I don't mind. Mrs. Bryans did tell us to do it so I guess it will be okay. Besides, we're just going to sleep together. I mean… Oh man! I'm sorry that came out wrong. I meant we will just be sleeping on the same bed and you know what I mean," I rambled senselessly.

"Yeah. I do know what you mean. So I guess you could use the bathroom to change while I change in here…" He trailed off.

"Sure. Sounds great." I headed to the bathroom and quickly slipped on my tank top and short shorts. I brushed my hair and brushed my teeth.

I got out and told Edward that he can use the bathroom and he quickly slipped inside to brush his teeth. I sat on the bed and went under the covers to sleep. I heard Edward turn off the faucet and flick off the light switch in the bathroom. He came out and got under the covers on the other side of the bed.

Surprisingly, I wasn't so agitated anymore and I felt myself relax. I yawned sleepily and mumbled, "Good night Edward."

"Sweet dreams, Bella."


	2. First Day As A Married Couple

**_AN: Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews. I'm sorry if the chapter is shorter than the first one. I'll try to make the next chapters better. _**

**_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters. Stephenie Meyer does.  
_**

**Chapter Two: First Day As A Married Couple**

I could hear whispering and faint giggling coming from somewhere in the room.

_Huh? Who're those people? What the..? Why is my pillow moving? Why is it harder than usual? Oh crap! Where am I?_ I thought.

I slowly opened my eyes to see Alice, Rosalie and Esme standing over me and grinning widely. Suddenly, it all came back to me.

I remembered yesterday's events and lifted my head from my pillow. Only it was not a pillow. When I looked at where my pillow was supposed to be, I found Edward's face just inches from my own. I looked down and saw his hands encircling my waist. I blushed at the position we were in as I was held on his side and my head was previously tucked between his chin and neck.

A giggle reminded me of the presence of other people. I tried futilely to escape his arms but he just pulled me tighter to him. I tried to pry his hands off of me amidst the laughter of the girls. I gave up trying to pull his hands off and just settled for waking him up.

"Edward." I whispered, shaking his shoulder. He groaned and mumbled, "One more minute."

"Edward you need to wake up or we'll be late for school." I told him. He just unconsciously held me tighter. Alice, Rosalie and Esme laughed loudly and this woke him up. His eyes snapped open and glared at the three.

"What are you doing here?" He asked abruptly.

"We just wanted to see why you two weren't up yet. Looks like you were getting a little comfortable there little brother." Alice taunted in a sing-song voice. I blushed and Edward, realizing that he had his arms around my waist, quickly withdrew them and blushed as well.

"Awww. Aren't they cute together? They even blush simultaneously! That is so adorable!" Rosalie squealed.

"Okay girls. I think we should leave the two together and quit teasing them for goodness' sakes." Esme smiled and ushered the two out before they could say anything else.

After they left, Edward and I agreed on who was going to use the bathroom in his room. He told me that I could use his bathroom and that he will just use the one in the guestroom. We took our showers and got ready for school.

Once we were both done, we made our way downstairs and followed the smell of pancakes. Esme was standing in front of the stove and cooking pancakes and eggs. Carlisle was already seated at the head of the table, reading the newspaper and sipping his coffee. Emmett was leaning on the kitchen counter talking to Rosalie and Alice and Jasper were already seated at the table next to each other with Carlisle on Alice's right side.

I sat down in front of Alice and Edward sat beside me. Esme served us plates piled with pancakes and eggs. I quickly ate mine after saying 'thank you' to Esme.

We all finished our breakfast and headed to school. As I rode with Edward, he asked me questions about myself and I provided short responses. We arrived as the school parking lot was filling up with students. We pulled in a slot and Edward opened the door for me yet again.

He grinned at me and I blushed. This seemed to be our routine. He would grin and I would blush.

Everyone was staring in our direction. Most of the girls were glaring at me hatefully and their glares intensified as Edward grabbed my hand and held it in his own.

"Why are you holding my hand?" I asked timidly. I was ducking my head to avoid showing my blushing cheeks.

"Aren't couples supposed to hold hands? Besides, we're already married, right?" He grinned playfully.

I couldn't help but smile in response. He was right, of course. Mrs. Bryans did say that we should act like married couples so that's what we're going to do. I would never admit it out loud but I kind of wished that everything was real. Wishful thinking again.

We walked in the hall hand in hand as everyone around us stared. There were whispers among the students as we passed them in the halls. We stopped by our lockers and gathered our things for first period.

Luckily, we had the same first period together so we made our way to the classroom before the bell rang. I usually sat by myself at the back but this time, Edward joined me and occupied the chair next to mine. Everyone was still staring but due to the seating arrangements, they had a hard time in being inconspicuous about it.

Not that they were actually trying hard to hide it. Subtlety is surely nonexistent to these people.

We listened as the teacher talked about the book that we were currently reading. Sometimes Edward would continue his interrogation by passing me notes and I would scribble down my answers while adding, 'aren't we supposed to be listening?' or 'I think we need to stop or the teacher will catch us' at the end of each answer. He never heeded my extended answers but merely shook his head while grinning crookedly and continuing to write down questions.

We continued this game until the bell rang, signaling the end of the class. I stood up to gather my things and Edward waited for me as I shoved my books inside my bag. My second period was History and unfortunately, Edward and I didn't have any classes together until lunch time. He walked me to my class and I tried to lengthen my strides so that we could arrive at the classroom and he can make it to his second period without any problem.

We stopped in the doorway of my classroom and I fidgeted, not knowing what to do.

"I'll see you later Bella. I'll be waiting for you out of your classroom and escort you to your next class. Is that okay with you?" He asked with an emotion in his eyes that I couldn't quite place. _Hope?_

"No, it's okay. You don't have to do that. You'll just tire yourself by doing something completely unnecessary. Besides, your class is in the other building right?"

"Yeah it is but I insist. It would be no bother at all and I'm as healthy as a horse so I'm pretty sure that I won't get tired from walking from one building to the other which have a distance of 6 feet by the way," He grinned.

I tried to protest again but he just shushed me and told me that he'll be there. I gave up and told him to hurry up or he'll be late for his class. He swooped down on me and kissed me on the forehead. He abruptly turned on his heel and walked to his class before I could even process everything that was happening.

My face reddened as some passers by had their mouths agape and stared like I grew another head or something. I walked briskly to my seat at the back and thanked the Lord that the teacher came in at that moment, effectively preventing the other students from staring at me again or worse, asking questions.

I was agitated the whole time and looked forward to the end of every class just to see Edward again. I know, I know. I'm going crazy. I've only met him for a very short period of time and here I was bouncing my leg up and down and obsessively looking at the wall clock and willing the hands to move faster to no avail.

Of course, the monotone voice of the teacher didn't help either, in making me stop the impatience that consumed my mind. The hands of the clock still moved at that agonizingly slow pace and it felt like an eternity passed when the bell rang.

I quickly collected my belongings and exited the classroom. I was not disappointed to see Edward leaning casually against the wall next to the door; on the contrary, I was actually ecstatic. Not that I actually showed it in my face for if I did, he would have thought I was weird and begged Mrs. Bryans to switch partners with someone else instead of the lunatic that was currently living in the same house as he is.

He took my hand and kissed it. He held it securely in his warm hands until we reached my next class and it was already time to part and unlock our joined hands. I entered the classroom and sat at my seat, ignoring the looks that the others were throwing my way. Third period ended and I found Edward, once again, outside of the classroom.

He escorted me to my next class and told me that he would not be able to wait outside of my classroom later. I told him that he need not worry and that it was fine. We said our goodbyes and he walked away while I went to my fourth period class.

Calculus was not really my strongest subject but I still received good marks. The teacher, Ms. Flemming, was very nice and explained everything very well. I always took it upon myself to listen attentively in this class and did everything I could to avoid showing any signs of boredom so as not to upset Ms. Flemming. But today, I just couldn't help daydreaming about how nice it would be to have a family.

I daydreamed of children-_my _children- running around the house as I cooked dinner. I daydreamed of playing with them and helping them up when they fall down but most of all, I daydreamed of having a partner for life who would return home to me every night and tell me about how his day at work was. I longed for a family and I hoped that one day, I would experience all of that.

I was snapped out of my daydream as the shrill noise of the bell resonated through the walls. I walked out of the classroom and stopped by my locker to relieve my back from the books that was inside it. As I closed my locker, someone rammed into me and I fell on the ground. _What the hell?_

I looked up at the person who didn't even bother saying sorry. I was met with cold blue eyes set on a heavily made up face that had blond hair surrounding it. _Lauren Mallory. _

You see, Lauren Mallory is the school's slut. She was a huge wanna be and had this annoying way of inserting the word 'like' after every word. She was accompanied by her ever faithful sidekick, Jessica Stanley. Everyone knew that they were both after Edward ever since he became popular and joined all of those school activities. They were the meanest, most obnoxious and possibly the dumbest people in the school.

Scratch that possibly part; they were absolutely, without a doubt, _the _dumbest people in the entire school. They were the airheads who paid their way through high school just so that they could graduate. I know this is very judgmental of me but let's face it, they were the stereotype cheerleaders who thought they were all that.

I got up from my position on the floor and tried to walk away and avoid a scene when she yanked my arm and slammed me against the locker. By now, there was already a crowd gathering around us and some of them looked excited for a fight.

My eyes were wide as Lauren smirked at me. I was cornered. Lauren and Jessica were blocking my way and I had no choice but to hear her out.

"Enjoying your time with Eddie?" She sneered unpleasantly. "Well, you better, like, be careful. Eddie is, like, _mine_ and you, like, better stay away from him. Besides, I'm, like, way more prettier than you and you aren't even smart like me."

My blood boiled and all I wanted in that moment was to punch her.

I didn't though, and I retained my composure. She wasn't worth it and I was pretty sure that redundancy is not an indication of a person's intellectual superiority. She continued insulting me and the worse part was some of the things she said were true.

I wasn't really pretty enough and guys never took a second glance at me. I was not talented and I was definitely not popular although I don't really mind the latter. I had very low self-esteem and sometimes I think that I'm not good enough for anybody. I didn't really mind since I didn't have anybody to impress upon a shining personality and my parents already loved me so I was content.

Yesterday, it was a miracle that I was comfortable enough to get a conversation going and earlier this morning, I was really open with Edward but right now, at this very moment, I wanted to build my walls up again and never let it break. I wanted to retreat back to my shy shell and hide my shortcomings from the world. Hard as I try to ignore her comments, it still hurt to hear her insult me in front of an audience.

I clenched my teeth together to keep the tears from falling. I didn't want to show weakness in front of anyone and the last time I cried was at my best friend, Jacob's wedding day. I cried because I was happy for him that day and I refuse to cry for any other emotion.

"Oh look. She looks like she's going to cry!" Jessica exclaimed gleefully. "Awww. Is little Bella crying? Poor little girl." They mocked me, using baby voices to irritate me.

"Excuse me. Let me through. Excuse me." A voice said, coming toward us. I would know that voice anywhere even though the person owning it have only been in close terms with me for a while. He made his way through the gathering crowd and emerged looking at me in concern.

"What's the matter?" He said, glaring at Lauren and Jessica in rage. I have never seen him so angry; then again, I've only spent time with him for a day.

"Oh come on Eddie! I know that you, like, want me and I'm, like, just taking care of this little whore here and warning her to, like, stay away from you. This way, nothing could, like, drag you down. You can thank me later. How about we talk about this over dinner?" She tried to look seductive while looking from beneath her lashes but she actually just failed miserably.

She was leaning on Edward with her hands on his chest and Edward looked at her in disgust. He grabbed her wrists and stepped away and placed her hands on her sides.

"Don't you ever call me Eddie. My name is Ed_ward_ NOT Eddie. I _don't _like you and I will _never _want you. _Never _call Bella a whore because she is the best girl in this school. She actually has a heart and a brain, to boot. And I will _never _under any circumstance, want Bella to stay away from me and she is _never_ a dead weight. Don't you _ever _bother Bella again because the second that you do that, I might change my mind in hitting a girl. Understand? Oh and for the record, I will _never ever _go out with you." He spat through clenched teeth.

I was pleased that he defended me and found myself tearing up a second time but for a different reason. He approached me and Jessica stepped out of his way. Lauren was still gaping like a fish and stood stock still on her spot.

"Come on. Let's go get our lunch." He told me and pulled me along by the hand. We entered the cafeteria and got our lunch. Edward insisted he pay for mine despite my protests. He pulled me along his family's table and pulled out my chair for me like the gentleman that he is. He sat down next to me and looked at me worriedly.

"Are you alright? Look, whatever Lauren said back there was a lie, okay? She's really a bitch and she loves to hit on people's self- esteem. None of what she said is true. Don't let her get to you, okay?"

"I'm fine." I said. It was my only response and I knew that it was a big fat lie. I wasn't fine and I knew that Edward was just trying to make me feel better even if he doesn't even know what the problem was. I appreciated it but I just didn't have the strength to conjure up an optimistic outlook.

Edward didn't press for information and didn't bother me with anymore pointless soothing words.

Somehow, he understood that I didn't want to talk and even asked his siblings not to badger me with questions. The day passed by and I found myself walking alongside Edward to his car. I got in and we sped back to his house and I tried to memorize the directions. I didn't want to get lost anytime soon.

We pulled up in the garage and went inside the house. We went up the stairs to his room and I went straight to the sofa and pulled out my current read. I wasn't very pleased with the ending and wanted to buy the sequel as soon as possible. While I was reading, Edward was doing something in his computer and had a concentrating look on his face. There was a knock on the door as I was rereading some of the parts that I liked and I looked up to see Alice in the doorway.

"Hey, Bella. I just wanted to talk to you. Can we go to my room, please?" She pleaded.

"It's fine I guess." I murmured.

"Alice please-" Edward started to say but was cut off by Alice saying, "Don't worry. I just want to talk to her."

"Don't make her uncomfortable, okay?" Edward requested.

"Sure thing." Alice chirped. She led me down the stairs to the second floor. I followed her into a room on the right side of the corridor.

Her room was not what I expected. Instead of finding pink everywhere, the color of the walls were a forest green and everything was covered with earthly hues. There was a king sized bed in the middle of the room and there were two doors on the left side of the room. A study table was on the right side of the room and it was cluttered with papers that had sketches on it of dresses and other outfits.

Alice sat on a bean bag on the floor in front of the flat screen. She pointed at another bean bag and indicated I sit. I made my way to it and sat down.

"I wanted to talk to you about what happened earlier," she began.

I opened my mouth and was about to say some form of protest that hopefully, will not upset her when she immediately said, "please just hear me out." I nodded and she continued, "I know that she insulted you at the hall in front of those people. She told you that she was better than you in everything. She told you that you were worthless and that you were not attractive. Do you know why I know these things?" She asked.

"You were there and you heard the whole thing?" I answered, questioning.

"I wasn't there. I know these things because she said the exact thing five years ago when Jasper and I started dating. She called me a freak and a weirdo and told me that Jasper was only going out with me out of pity. She also said that I was such a slut when she was the one flirting with every guy in school. I believed her at the time. It literally ruined me. I had my first fight with Jasper because of what she said and I barely spoke with anyone even my family for a month!" Her eyes were brimming with tears that never rolled down her cheeks throughout the conversation.

"But then I saw how pointless it is to let someone's words ruin you. I got my life back together and now Jasper and I are stronger than ever. I have a tight knit family and I'm happy. I'm telling you this now because I wouldn't want you to waste a month before realizing what is right. You really shouldn't believe Lauren. She's a liar and giving her the satisfaction of taking her words to heart is not in any way ideal. She loves to break everybody up. That's just what she does. It's our job to not let it get to us. She's trying to ruin your relationship with Edward before it can even bloom," she explained and I could see the sincerity in her eyes. "

Don't let her do this to you. You deserve to have friends and I would really like to be one of them." She smiled softly.

I smiled back at her once I realized the truth in her words. She is right. I couldn't let Lauren get under my skin. It doesn't matter what anybody else says about you. The only people who matter are those you care about.

"Thanks for telling me this Alice. Thank you for saving me from a regrettable decision. Friends?" I held my hand out for her to shake. She didn't though. Instead, she got up from her bean bag and hugged me tightly.

"Friends. And of course we will be the best of friends. Always remember that I'll be here if you need a pep talk or anything at all. Oh and Bella?"

"Yes?"

"Don't forget that you are someone's inspiration. That certain someone is closer than you think he is. Just you wait and see what I mean." She winked at me.

We spent the rest of the day hanging out with each other in her room. We watched a movie and told each other stories of our past experiences.

She was really fun and I found myself enjoying her company. Edward was surprised when he called us down for dinner to find the two of us, rolling on the floor laughing our asses off. He looked amused at our antics and asked us to come down to dinner already.

I walked ahead of them and didn't catch Edward thanking Alice with a relieved smile on his face.

When dinner was over, we played games and fooled around. I got to know everyone, one way or another and I was happy to have friends. We had fun and the earlier incident was long forgotten.

**_AN: Please review! I would really like to know what you think!_**


	3. Mystery Letters

_**A/N: Hey people! Thanks for your reviews! Here's another chapter at your request. Enjoy. :) **_

_**I also have to apologize for forgetting to put disclaimers so I would like to put this disclaimer for every chapter in this story.**_

_**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns the characters. I thought of the plot but she is the master behind the love story that we have all grown to love. :)**_

**Chapter Three: Mystery Letters**

Life at Forks High went on without a glitch. Lauren didn't bother us anymore and I have grown closer to the Cullens, especially Edward than I could have ever hoped.

After that time when Alice gave me the low down on Lauren's attempts to ruin her life, I finally felt better about myself. I talked and laughed and had a great time with the Cullens. We became great friends and Alice, Rosalie and I even had an impromptu slumber party in the living room in my third night there.

It was Wednesday and the pitter patter of the rain sounded throughout the Cullen house. I rose from the bed without waking Edward.

We now slept with a pillow between us which always got thrown away unconsciously sometime while we were sleeping. We always woke up tightly embracing each other and it has been a habit of mine to wake up before he did to avoid the awkward moment that was surely to descend upon us once he found out that we always woke up in an embrace.

I completed my morning routine which was taking a shower, getting dressed and waking Edward up before I go down to eat breakfast. Esme was cooking away when I found her in the kitchen. We greeted each other and ate our breakfast. The others arrived shortly after I did and we all finished our breakfasts together and went to school.

Everything was going smoothly and before I knew it, it was already lunch and I was making my way to my locker.

Not many people stared anymore and for that I was extremely grateful. It was starting to get nerve wracking to feel the eyes trained on your every move. I opened my locker and a piece of paper fluttered out and fell to the floor. I picked it up and unfolded it curiously. There inside written in an elegant script was,

_I see you everyday,_

_listen to everything you say._

_You may not realize it yet,_

_But you will in the end, I bet._

_You are my inspiration,_

_As my hands press these ivory keys._

_I hope to get your attention,_

_With this heartfelt piece._

_I'll leave a letter in your locker,_

_Every day of this week._

_In the end, I would much rather,_

_Be the one to speak._

_ -anonymoussenior7_

I felt my face splitting into a wide smile at the words but it vanished when I thought of the possibilities. 

_What if this is a prank?_ I fretted internally.

I never really get guys' attention so why now? It just seems too good to be true. Even if it is real, what in the world can the person even see in me? I wasn't a gorgeous model with long legs and I definitely did nothing to inspire anyone. 

_What if this was only a dare? _I imagined that the poor kid must have been miserable with this task. Then the unthinkable happened, I became paranoid. 

_What if this guy's some stalker? What if he was one of those creepy old guys who obsessively follow his victims and then go to their house in the middle of the night and massacre everyone in the building? _I imagined so many outcomes and even went as far as reliving scenes from CSI: Las Vegas.

Okay, I have officially lost it._ Isabella Swan get a hold of yourself! This is STUPID. Stop being paranoid. Maybe it really is just an admirer. So stop freaking out and just enjoy the letters for the rest of the week._ I berated myself. I sometimes have an internal monologue with myself. I really am insane.

Once I calmed down and my paranoia subsided, I entered the cafeteria and piled my tray with food. I walked to the Cullen's table- _our _table- and felt the note in my pocket become heavy as I looked at Edward.

I don't know why but I felt guilty all of a sudden. It's not like I was doing anything with the secret admirer and I didn't even know the guy! So why do I suddenly feel like I'm betraying Edward? We weren't even a real couple and it's not like he'll care. Right?

Alice was looking at Edward and had a smug smile on her face. Edward was just shaking his head at her and I could see him roll his eyes when she looked away. I wonder what's going on.

"Hey Bella. What took you so long? Edward here was getting antsy. He was worried about you." Alice said as I sat down next to Edward. Let's see what Edward's reaction will be when he hears of the letter.

"Oh. I just got a letter in my locker and it just got me thinking for a while." I shrugged nonchalantly and sneaked a peek at Edward from the corners of my eyes. Instead of stiffening up or getting an angry expression in his eyes like I expected; he didn't react. AT ALL.

Well there go my hopes. I shouldn't have even let the thought of Edward being genuinely interested in me to cross my mind. I should have known that he would never be interested. I mean, look at me. I could never stand next to him without looking too bland.

"Really? What did it say?" Alice asked excitedly.

"Yeah come on! Tell us!" Rosalie commanded. She seemed to be a little more enthusiastic than usual and I wondered why. Something fishy is definitely going on here.

"Uhhh…okay? Here you go." I retrieved the note in my pocket and handed it to both of them. They pressed their heads together and 'awwwed'.

"What are you 'awwwwing' about? What's that?" Emmett asked curiously. He was just talking- well more like arguing- with Jasper over who won the video game competition that they had last night while me and the girls were having a slumber party.

He tried to make a grab at the piece of paper but Rosalie smacked him in the back of the head while Alice hid it in her hands.

"None of your business! It's girl stuff." Rosalie snapped. "So carry on with your conversation with Jasper." Emmett pouted and sulked in his chair.

"Awww. Come on Em, just because Jasper kicked your ass, it doesn't mean you can't do anything. Besides, it's just one match, right?" I tried to console Emmett but he just glared at me.

"Actually Bella. They had ten matches where Jasper repeatedly crushed him to a pulp." Edward smirked and looked like he wanted to burst out laughing.

I was speechless. Emmett lost all _ten matches_? He must have really sucked.

Emmett glared at Edward with a murderous expression and made a show of rising up from his chair with his head held high and marching out of the cafeteria with the remaining shred of his masculinity. Once he reached the door, he had a hard time of opening it and had to pull on it repeatedly for it to budge.

We were valiantly trying to hold back our laughter but we just couldn't contain it when we saw him struggling with a door. We burst out in fits of laughter and Emmett stormed out dramatically.

Alice returned the paper to me and told me that she and I will have a talk later in her room. We all headed to our classes. Edward and I arrived just as the bell rang in Biology.

Edward asked the teacher, Mr. Banner, to exchange partners the first day of the health project. I became his lab partner and Angela -his previous partner- became partners with Ben -my previous partner.

I was glad for the change of seats because I always knew that Ben liked Angela and his feelings were readily reciprocated. I would catch Ben sometimes staring longingly at Angela from our seat at the back.

Maybe switching partners can push Ben in the right direction and help him to finally muster up the courage and ask her out. Being married in the health project wouldn't be too bad either in giving them many opportunities in finally admitting their feelings for each other.

We took our seats at our table and listened to Mr. Banner drone on and on about the Phases of Mitosis. Edward reached over one time and grabbed my hand to hold in both of his. He played with my fingers for the duration of the class and I couldn't help but marvel at how right everything felt.

Being with Edward was possibly the most perfect thing in the world. Every time I'm with him, it just felt so _right_. There was no struggle with him and I always felt comfortable even in the awkward moments between us. He was always a gentleman and always let me set the pace. He didn't feel the need to rush me and always helped me up whenever I tripped. He never laughed at me whenever my clumsy nature decided to present itself. I just wanted to be like this forever.

I wished that this health project would never end.

The bell rang and we made our way to Gym. Unfortunately, this is the class that I have with every one of the Cullens. I always find myself dreading this time of day because of the endless list of my mishaps in this class. I always ended up embarrassing myself because of my lack of coordination.

Coach Clapp would sometimes let me sit out an activity if I hurt another person which happened occasionally. I really hoped that we wouldn't have to play anything today. Of course, luck was not on my side.

We were playing volleyball and I was already worrying about how many heads will be hurting by the end of the period.

I walked to the girls' changing room while Edward headed to the boys' locker room. I changed into our gym clothes which consisted of a dark gray t-shirt and black shorts. I went out to the court with Alice and Rosalie and we all sat down on the bleachers waiting for Coach Clapp to assign the teams.

"Leaders are Alice Cullen and Emmett Cullen. Pick your teams!" He barked. Relief washed over me.

The leaders were going to pick the teams so maybe Alice will have enough sense not to pick me since I was a walking disaster just waiting to happen.

"This is a boys versus girls game so pick away." Coach Clapp commanded.

"I pick Jasper, Edward, Riley, James and Michael." Emmett said, while grinning at us mischievously.

"Fine. Then I pick Rosalie, Angela, Jane, Heidi and Bella." She retorted.

_Wait! What? Was she out of her mind?_ I thought aghast.

"Hahahahaha. Bella? Seriously, Alice? Hahahahaha!" Emmett laughed boisterously.

"SHUT UP EM!" Edward and Alice said at the same time. I blushed at what Emmett did.

I will most definitely NOT stand around and be insulted. I'll show them what I've got (even if I don't have much to work with). I'm going to beat those boys' asses.

"Alice… you do know that I'll just hurt everyone in the court right? You're aware that I'm a walking disaster, right?" I asked Alice in a small voice.

"It's okay Bella. You'll do great. I know these things and trust me. We WILL win. I promise." Alice said lightly and she skipped to her position on the court.

"Okay. But remember. I DID warn you. I'm not held responsible for any injuries okay?" I took my place in the front line next to her. She just laughed in response and we started the game.

At first, everything went off without a problem but everything fell apart when I tripped. I brought down Angela with me and we crashed on the floor.

She fell on top of me and we got in a very awkward position. The others ran to us in alarm and Edward was instantly at my side.

"Bella are you okay?" Angela asked as she rolled off of me on her side.

"I'm fine." I grunted. Angela got up from the floor and stood up. I was about to follow in her steps when suddenly the floor disappeared from beneath me.

I gasped in surprise and thought that I was falling through the floor. Wow, I really must be paranoid. It turns out that Edward was just lifting me up from the ground.

"What are you doing? Can you please put me down now?" I said in a small voice. He ignored me and told Coach Clapp that we were going to sit this one out now. He carried me over to the bleachers and sat me down before sitting down next to me.

"Are you alright? Does something hurt?" Edward asked in concern.

"No it's okay. I'm fine. Don't worry about it."

"Bella, are you sure? Please don't try to downplay anything. It won't help one bit."

"No, seriously. I'm fine." I said for the second time. "It's not like I got shot or anything. I'll live so don't worry about it." I sighed.

He sighed, "If you say so."

I nodded my head earnestly and had a smile plastered on my face.

We just watched the game and saw that the girls were kicking ass. It seemed that without Edward in their team, the boys were weak.

"You didn't have to sit out the game because of me, you know? I would have been fine." I said matter-of-factly to Edward.

"No it's okay. I wanted to make sure you were okay and besides, it would definitely even things up." He smirked at me. Looks like the gentleman had an ego to contradict his manners.

The game ended and the girls won. There was a lot of cheering on the girls' part and a multitude of groans from the boys. That's what you get for messing with girls!

We gathered our stuff and headed home. I went with Alice to her room with Rosalie tagging along. The guys retreated to their rooms to do 'manly stuff' as they would call it.

"Okay so SPILL!" Alice demanded eagerly. She and Rosalie looked like school girls with all of their squealing and ear-to-ear grins.

"What do you want to know?" I asked cautiously. I was getting a little apprehensive and the two of them had crazy lights in their eyes.

"What did you feel when you read the letter? What do you think of the guy? Will you go out with him if he asks you out?" They threw the questions left, right and center. I barely had time to register them.

"Well, I felt happy to tell you the truth. It was so sweet and I felt my heart melt when reading it. I think whoever gave me the letter was very sweet and caring. I think he would definitely be a gentleman. I don't know what I would say if he asked me out. I mean, it's just that when I walked in the cafeteria and saw you guys that I felt terrible. I don't know why but when I looked at Edward, I felt guilty. Like I betrayed him or something, you know? I don't think I would even go out with the person."

They gave each other meaningful looks and I felt out of the loop and suspicious. They knew something I didn't and it seems like I won't be let in on the secret very soon.

"So… are you going to tell me what's going on or…what?" I asked hesitantly.

"Nope."

"Not a chance. And whatever do you mean by that?" Alice imitated in an English accent.

"You two have been acting weird all day and I bet Edward is in on this little secret of yours. So what is it?"

"Sorry Bella but we can't tell you." Rosalie said.

"But don't you worry. You'll find out soon enough." Alice beamed excitedly.

"Fine." I sighed and didn't press them anymore.

Thursday rolled around and I received yet another letter. It read,

_Your smile lights up the dark_

_Your touch ignites a spark._

_You have a grip on my heart,_

_In my success, you have a huge part._

_I first saw your beautiful face,_

_Intent on a book in our junior days._

_My heart jolted in my chest,_

_Compared to all feelings, it was the best._

_I hope you give me a chance,_

_And let me take you to the winter dance._

_I hope that you wouldn't freak,_

_When face-to-face we speak._

_ -anonymoussenior7_

I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face. It just made my heart melt. I wanted to see who was leaving the letters and hoped to find out tomorrow. Although, I just can't shake off the feeling of unfaithfulness.

I already knew that Edward was not interested in me. I just wasn't anything special. So maybe I should just give this guy a chance and try to squash my impractically unrealistic hopes. I need to formulate a plan quickly. Maybe I could catch the culprit tomorrow before lunch. Besides, we didn't have Calculus tomorrow due to the meeting that Ms. Flemming was going to attend. So free period for us.

I was excited when I woke up to the sun streaming in the window. I can finally put my plan into action that I have been formulating yesterday. Today is also the end of the week so I'm going to see him one way or another.

I masked my excitement with my normal expression as I walked out of my third period class. I decided to just sit on the bench that was located perfectly outside of a classroom. It was placed in a way that I can see anyone walking down the hall. I brought with me a book so that I wouldn't look to suspicious.

I waited and waited but no one came. 

_I thought he was going to give me a letter every day of the week?_ I wondered.

I waited some more but finally admitted to myself that he wasn't coming. I sighed in defeat and trudged my way to the cafeteria. I was really disappointed that I didn't get to see who he was.

Well maybe I should just wait for the time to come. Someone out there is meant for me and if not, I could still find solace in the company of pets.

Okay. Maybe a mental picture of me growing old and alone surrounded by animals wasn't really a good motivator.

I entered the cafeteria and got my lunch. But when I turned to go to our table, only the girls were present. I wonder what's going on.

"Hey guys! Where're the boys?" I asked with curiosity burning behind my words.

"We don't know. Maybe they just got held up in class." Alice shrugged innocently. She went back to her conversation with Rosalie. I picked my pasta with my fork, not really having the appetite.

Suddenly, the doors of the cafeteria burst open and in came Edward, Emmett and Jasper carrying guitars. _What are they up to?_

"Hey everyone! Listen up!" Emmett bellowed in his loud voice that carried across the cafeteria.

Upon hearing his voice, everyone in the room fell silent and had their attention focused on the three brothers. Emmett nudged Edward with his elbow, indicating for him to proceed.

"We're here to play something for a special lady in the room today," Edward graced the crowd with his charming smile and almost all of the girls present swooned. "Please listen carefully to what I have to say." He started to strum his guitar along with Emmett and Jasper.

He proceeded to sing the lyrics with a voice that made my heart melt.

_I won't talk  
I won't breathe  
I won't move till you finally see  
that you belong with me_

_you might think  
I don't look  
but deep inside in the corner of my mind  
I'm attached to you  
mmmm_

_I'm weak  
it's true  
cause I'm afraid to know the answer  
do you want me too?  
'cause my heart keeps falling faster_

_I've waited all my life to cross this line  
to the only thing that's true  
so I will not hide  
it's time to try anything to be with you  
all my life I've waited  
this is true_

I felt my heart drop to the region of my stomach.

He was professing his feelings to this girl. I could feel the tears start to form in my eyes, blurring my vision. I gritted my teeth to hold it at bay, not wanting it to spill out. I never really stood a chance. He was obviously head over heels for this girl, and I can't do anything about it. 

_you don't know  
what you do  
every time you walk into the room  
I'm afraid to move_

_I'm weak  
it's true  
I'm just scared to know the ending  
Do you see me too?  
Do you even know you met me!_

This girl has absolutely no idea! She has the heart of the most sought after guy in the school. I would give anything to be that girl.

I kept my head down the whole time he was singing. I just couldn't bear the thought of seeing him staring at his girl.

_I've waited all my life to cross this line  
to the only thing that's true  
so I will not hide  
its time to try anything to be with you  
all my life I've waited  
this is true_

_I know when I go  
I'll be on my way to you  
the way that's true_

_I've waited all my life to cross this line  
to the only thing that's true  
so I will not hide  
its time to try anything to be with you  
all my life I've waited  
this is true_

The hall was silent for a moment but then everyone erupted into cheers. Much of the guys were wolf-whistling and some were whooping with their fists in the air. Most of the girls had tears in their eyes and were 'awwwing'.

I couldn't bring myself to look at them, so I averted my eyes from their direction to my food and focused all of my attention on it like it held the solution to global warming.

I could feel the air crackle around me and felt a presence behind my chair. I instinctively looked up and got lost in pools of emerald green. The expression in his eyes was disarming. I couldn't look away.

"Bella. I like you so much. I want to spend time with you. I want to be the one to make you smile. I want to be the one to make you laugh. Most of all, I want to be the one to make you happy. So please. Will you give me a chance to show you what I feel?" He looked unsure like I was going to shut him down any second. Yeah, right! Like any girl in her right mind would do that. I felt so happy to hear him say those words which sounded quite familiar.

"Were you the person putting those notes in my locker?" I blurted out.

He smiled and nodded his head. I blushed but could feel a small smile creep its way on my face.

"So… will you go out with me?" He started to look nervous all of a sudden. He shifted his weight on the other foot repeatedly and looked like he couldn't stand still.

"Yes," I whispered so low that I don't know if they even heard me.

"Can you please repeat that?" He asked. I knew that he heard it the first time by the way he had a goofy smile plastered on his face.

"I said, 'yes'." I uttered a little more loudly this time.

"Could you please repeat it again? A little louder this time." He was positively beaming. His eyes were alight with happiness and he looked like he was about to jump around.

"Yes." I giggled.

"YES! She said, yes!" He exclaimed loudly. We were both grinning ear-to-ear by now. I couldn't help but feel happy. I would never have thought that he would actually feel those things for me.

Alice and Rosalie were sharing knowing looks and Emmett and Jasper were giving Edward a pat on the back. Most of the students were clapping but of course, some were glaring at us.

_Can't they grow up and get over it? Jeez these people are juvenile! _I thought in exasperation.

I was caught off guard when Edward suddenly picked me up and twirled me around, still grinning crookedly. His laughter was so contagious that I couldn't help laughing as well.

So all that fussing about and drama were for nothing as I now see who the person behind the mystery letters were. All that pondering of my self worth was useless and if I had known that Edward liked me, then self-consciousness be damned, I never would have gone through all those reflections of my supposed unfaithfulness.

It may seem like a fairytale now but there are still some things that will test our bonds as we walk towards happiness.


	4. Barista Duties

_**A/N: Hey people! Sorry for not updating soon. I just got caught up in school. Here's the next chapter! Enjoy! Looking forward to your reviews. **_

_**Disclaimer: The characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.**_

**Chapter Four: Barista Duties **

Edward and I had a very successful date. Alice, of course, didn't waste time 'standing around' as she put it, and immediately sprang into action to plan what I was going to wear, what my make up would be and all that girly stuff. I simply didn't care and let her have her way with me. I was on cloud nine and I didn't plan on returning back to earth anytime soon.

Here I was, thinking that everything couldn't be more perfect when suddenly, he shows up with white roses with that crooked smile in place. I was practically a puddle of goo at his feet. He took me to a restaurant in Port Angeles and didn't even acknowledge the presence of the waitress that was unabashedly flirting at him despite the fact that I was standing right next to him. This fueled my insecurities but I pushed it back and tried to stop myself from thinking this way ever again as it often leads to unnecessary musings.

We talked as we ate and found a playground near an orphanage. We sat on the swings and just struck up a conversation about how it would feel to lose your parents.

_Flashback_

_We were gently swinging back and forth, enjoying each other's company and the cool night air kissing our faces. I was gazing at the orphanage and wondering about the kids in there._

"_Hey Edward?" I asked, still staring intently at the orphanage._

"_Hmmm?" He answered, sounding like I just pulled him from his train of thought._

"_I was wondering…" I trailed off, unsure whether to continue. I didn't want to bother him with silly questions and he seemed to be thinking of something at the moment._

"_Yes…?" He looked at me curiously, waiting for me to continue. I could see him at the corner of my eye and saw that his eyes were burning with an emotion that I could not understand. _

"_What do you think it is for the orphans? How do you think they manage? I mean, I could never live without my parents. I may be the mature one in our family but I still can't imagine being in a world where they no longer exist or perhaps be with me. I just wondered how they felt. Not being able to meet your parents; not having them close by when you feel lonesome," I turned my head to him and looked into his eyes, "not having a shoulder to cry on when you feel hopeless."_

_I could imagine it; kids who didn't know their own parents; kids who have never felt their parents comforting embrace. It was saddening to think of these._

"_I think they feel lost. I would if I never knew my parents. They don't have anyone to guide them- not that I undermine the ability of the workers in the orphanage to guide. They just have a handful of kids in their hands that need undivided attention- attention that I doubt they could give. I'm sure that they feel abandoned and alone," he turned his head to look at the orphanage in front of us, "I really am grateful that the school assigned us this project. It really is an eye-opener to the fact that not only is there plenty of unexpected pregnancies among teenagers, but also of the huge possibility that those teenage parents would give their children up for adoption. I think whatever the reason the parents of those children have for leaving them, we should be open-minded and we shouldn't be too quick to judge. You never really know a person once you see things in their perspective, right?" He smiled sadly at the orphanage. He took a long look at it and suddenly turned to face me._

_He had an evil smirk in his face and was looking at me with mischief in his eyes. _

"_Do you want me to push you on the swing?" He asked innocently._

_My eyes widened as I realized what he was about to do. "EDWARD NO!" I shouted._

_But it was too late; he already stood behind me and was pushing the swing so strong that I fell off. _

"_Bella! Are you okay?" He asked alarmed._

_I glared at him fiercely and shrieked, "Edward, I'm going to kill you!"_

_His eyes widened and he ran from me. I chased him around the playground; shouting death threats as I made a swipe at him. The night ended with playful banter between us and we finally went home._

I walked along the hallway, heading to the gym. We were having another health class meeting in there.

Mrs. Bryans picked up the microphone once the chattering died down and she had an opportunity to speak.

She cleared her throat and said, "It's the second week of your project and I'm glad to say that you have all been doing extraordinarily well. I expected most of you to get in a fight the first day but everything turned out okay and I applaud you for that."

Applause broke through the room as some people were whooping in glee.

"Okay, okay. Settle down people, quiet down." She commanded.

"As we all know, since it is the second week; we will be assigning your jobs today and the place where you would be working," she continued in an even voice.

"So please fall in line and get your card from the table where your job is already indicated. You start work tomorrow. Good day," she smiled and stood at the back of the table to assist everyone in getting their cards.

The administrators clearly haven't given much thought to what jobs to assign since there was a handful who became janitors. I got assigned as a barista in one of the local coffee shops and Rosalie did too. Edward became a music tutor and Jasper was the school councilor's assistant. Alice jumped around in joy as she received her card bearing the word 'saleslady'. Emmett got the short end of the stick. He became one of the school janitors and it looked like he wasn't too psyched about the idea of cleaning up hallways.

"I mean, why the hell anybody would assign me as a janitor? I'm not saying that it's not an honorable profession but seriously? Do they honestly think that these muscles," he flexed his biceps, "would do much work, cleaning up rooms? I could not believe this! This is an outrage! A scandal!"

Emmett was still complaining about his job; and he hasn't even started yet!

"It's okay, Em. I'm sure that everything will turn out fine. What could possibly go wrong?" Jasper comforted him.

~Next Day~

"I am going to kill you Jasper!" Emmett glared hatefully at Jasper's laughing form.

Turns out Jasper jinxed Emmett by saying the phrase that is globally known to bring bad luck. And here is very bad luck.

Emmett was wearing a uniform. Not just any uniform. It was a tracksuit colored soft blue with the words JANITOR in big bold black letters on his back.

That's not all. He was also wearing a ridiculous hat with the words HERE TO CLEAN UP YOUR MESS embedded on the cap.

The worst part. Everyone was pointing at him and laughing. It's not because of the silly outfit or the misleading cap. It was actually because at this very moment, he was cleaning up puke. On the ground. Using paper towels instead of a mop.

The old school janitor locked the equipment room when he finished cleaning the school. Unfortunately, he lost his key. That's why Emmett is now glaring at Jasper holding a plastic bag full of used paper towels that smelled awfully stinky.

Lesson learned: NEVER jinx a statement. EVER.

We might have gotten some laughs from it but of course, it means that Emmett will be a pain on the butt the next few days. Revenge isn't out of the equation either.

Our day passed by uneventfully except for the glares that Emmett keeps shooting us. At lunch time, no one dared to spill anything because they all knew not to mess with Emmett when he was angry. And he was furious right now.

For the week that I have known Emmett, he doesn't do well with public humiliation and he likes to get even. By even, I mean plan revenge.

Which brings us to a sticky situation ten hours later where all of us, except Rosalie of course, woke up in our beds covered with something sticky.

I was having a wonderful dream. I was in a beautiful meadow with the sun shining on my face. There was a person next to me but I couldn't see his face because it was all blurry and stuff. He was about to speak (I'm sure of it because his lips started moving) when suddenly I was bathed in something sticky. _Very _sticky.

I sniffed it and tentatively licked it with my tongue. I know, gross right? I mean, what if that was poop or something.

Luckily, it was only chocolate. I could hear screams erupt from the doorway.

"EMMETT CULLEN! I am going to kill you! How the hell do you think I'm going to get this out of my hair?" Alice came barging in the room with a murderous expression on her face.

Emmett was laughing on the ground, clutching his sides. He was holding a digital camera in one of his hands and had chocolate on the other one.

"You think this is funny?" shrieked Alice, "You think it's easy removing this sticky thing from my hair?" she continued and stomped toward Emmett standing over his burly form on the floor, "You will regret this Emmett Cullen. Mark my words. You WILL regret this." She glared at him some more and stormed out of the room.

I felt Edward stir next to me. I was surprised that he didn't wake up from all the noise. I waited for him to realize the situation we were in and counted to three in my head. _One, two, three_.

"WHAT THE HELL?" He shouted loudly.

He was looking frantically at everything around him and his eyes finally landed on Emmett's laughing form. His panicked look turned into one of realization and his face hardened as he glared at his brother.

"What did you do Emmett?" He asked in an even voice. I don't know why but it seems like the calm voice sounds much more menacing than an outraged one.

"I… well… I got m-my…" Emmett gasped in between fits of laughter, "I got my r-revenge!" He finally got the words out and was visibly calming down.

"What is this covering us?" Edward asked in a detached voice. His face was expressionless.

"Chocolate. You know what they say, 'revenge is sweet' and sticky, might I add." Emmett grinned obviously proud of his _very original _ plan. Psh. NOT.

"So you decided to get revenge on us by covering us in chocolate while we are sleeping, am I right?"

"Yup. And I took pictures to post on the school website," he was smiling proudly, "Then you will be subjected to public humiliation just like I did."

This piece of information gave me another thing to put to Emmett's list of characteristics:

1) Emmett was a giant teddy bear despite the hard muscles covering his body like armor.

2) Emmett has his moments where he becomes _really _slow in picking up things.

3) Emmett was very sensitive.

4) Originality isn't really one of Emmett's qualities.

5) Emmett doesn't get revenge. He likes to get _even_.

6) Emmett is proud of the little things in life. Even his unoriginal pranks.

I know it's kind of weird that I made a list of his characteristics but on the other hand, I do have a list of characteristics for the other Cullens. Edward was by far the longest list and most of it was redeeming qualities. Yeah, I know. I'm obsessed like that over him. So, back to the matter at hand.

"Edward…?" I trailed off, concerned by his expression. His face was very red and he looked about ready to explode any second.

"Uh, oh," Emmett muttered under his breath and quickly ran out of the room like a bat out of hell.

"EMMETT CULLEN I AM GOING TO KILL YOU! GIVE ME BACK THAT DAMNED CAMERA NOW!" Edward shouted loudly in anger.

He got up from the bed and ran out of the room almost slipping on the floor from the chocolate on his feet.

I just shook my head sadly. Boys will be boys.

I got up from the bed and showered. Thankfully, I got all the chocolate off and was able to get dressed before Edward returned. He still looked mad but not so much like earlier.

We all got ready and the car smelled like chocolate on our way to school. This was my first day at my new job. We were going to work after school.

Edward's workplace was just across the street from mine. He was going to work in a quaint studio and I was with Rosalie in the coffee shop.

When school finally ended, Edward drove me and Rosalie to the coffee shop and he walked across the street to the studio.

Rose and I walked in and quickly introduced ourselves to the manager. He hurried us off to a room to get changed to our uniform which- thankfully- consisted of a brown polo shirt and a green apron above it. He taught us the basics and we got the hang of it and were working our asses off like pros. It was pretty easy since it was only making coffee but the real challenge proved not to be in the caffeine but in the customers.

Most of the customers were men and of course they were ogling Rosalie like she was something to eat. Disgusting!

We worked diligently and tried not to mind the stares that we got. Well, most of it was directed at Rosalie but I still felt uncomfortable standing next to her. I was making the coffee while Rosalie was minding the counter and getting the customer's orders. She finally sighed in exasperation and asked me to switch with her. I could tell that she was really annoyed and tired of the unwelcome attention directed at her so I told her sure.

Most of the customers were nice enough but then a blond haired guy came along smirking at me and looking Rosalie up and down. It was so disgusting that I asked his order in a snappy tone, "What would you like to get, sir?"

I tried to keep my face expressionless and it must have worked because he didn't seem fazed by me.

"I'd like to get that fine piece of ass right there. That chick with the blond hair and voluptuous curves," he smirked arrogantly. I raised an eyebrow and told him to wait a moment. Let's see what Rose does to him.

"Hey Rose," I called to her as she was giving a customer his order.

"Yeah?" She shouted back.

"A gentleman here would like to speak to you. He said that you were, and I quote, 'a fine piece of ass'. So what do you say?" I gave her a look full of meaning and she grinned catching up to what I meant by speaking to her.

"Sure thing. Wait a moment please," She cleaned off her hands and walked around to the guy. She talked to him as she lead him to the door and he might have thought that she was encouraging his advances because he suddenly grabbed her ass and I knew that it was the last straw for Rose.

She grabbed his wrists and twisted them in her hands. She kneed him where the sun doesn't shine and growled, "Asshole, if you ever do this to me or any other girl again I will hunt you down. You think that you might be all that, but guess what- you're not. So why don't you take your big head full of perverted thoughts and get out of this shop. Never come back again, okay?" Rosalie finished off in a sweet voice and let go of the guy's hands from her tight grip.

The guy glared at Rosalie and growled, "You're going to pay for this bitch." He then scurried away upon receiving an icy look from Rose.

Rosalie went back to her post on the bar all the while muttering things like _pigs _or _ass wipe. _ I chuckled quietly to myself and continued working.

It was around 7 when our boss told us to close up the store as he went out for his 'date'. Yeah, right. With his looks, the only date he's gonna get is with his mom.

We cleaned everything up and got changed in our normal clothes. After grabbing all of our things we closed up the shop and started our walk to a diner for dinner.

It was late November and Rosalie and I could definitely feel winter coming. The night air was chilly and unfortunately, we didn't bring extra protection from the cold.

A gust of wind blew our hairs to our faces and goose bumps rose in our arms. I don't know why but I have this strange feeling creeping up in my throat. Call me paranoid but it seems like someone was following us.

Rosalie huffed, exasperatedly fixing her hair, "Ugh! This wind is starting to irritate me. It's ruining my hair!"

Another gust of wind blew around us and I shivered, "Hey Rose. Can you feel that?"

"Feel what? If you're talking about the wind, I could pretty much tell you that my hair is already acquainted with it," she huffed angrily again; trying to fix her hair.

"I think someone's following us," I whispered worriedly. I was going over self defense moves in my head just in case. What if it was a rapist?

Rosalie looked behind her and her eyes widened to the size of saucers. She started walking faster and dragging me by my elbow.

"Just keep walking and don't look back, Bella. There is a group of men following us and I think that the guy I kneed in the groin earlier is one of them," she spat through gritted teeth.

I nodded my head and started to walk faster. I felt Rosalie jerk me back and I stumbled. I whipped my head to look at her and she was looking to the front.

There were a few guys there. They were obviously drunk by the way they were swaying and laughing boisterously.

_Why didn't we just catch a ride with Edward earlier? _I thought desperately.

The two groups were closing in on us and I knew we were trapped. There was no one around to help us since Port Angeles really wasn't the busiest town. There were no cars passing by and I could feel Rose gripping my forearm tightly.

We were both scared and there were at least eight of them if not more. They were all laughing and grinning at us evilly.

"Look who's here. I told you, you would regret this," the blond guy from the shop taunted, "Not so tough now, are you?"

His companions cackled and Rosalie and I inched closer to the wall of an abandoned shop behind us. I wanted to scream but I couldn't since my throat felt like closing up. I could see that Rose had the same problem I did because she too was looking terrified and had her mouth closed.

"Come on sweethearts. It won't be so bad. We'll make sure to make it as painless as possible," grinned a burly man with a bearded face.

One of them tried to grab Rosalie but before he could, I kneed him and tried to punch the guy next to him. Tried being the operative word.

"You bitch!" Another one screamed.

One guy tried to pry my hands off of Rosalie and another did the same to Rose's hands. I kicked and punched and finally found my voice and screamed for all I was worth. Rosalie did the same and the two of us shrieked and knocked down the others.

Three of them already bolted upon hearing us scream; probably afraid that someone heard us. Two of them were already on the floor clutching their stomachs from where we punched them which left only three persistent assholes who tried to stop us from wriggling in their grasps.

I kicked back and forth and the one holding me slackened his grip, giving me enough time to break away from him. I ran over to Rosalie and swung my fist at her captor but he quickly caught my wrist and flung me to the ground. My head hit the ground and I felt only seconds from unconsciousness.

"Bella!" Rosalie screamed.

I vaguely heard a car screech to a stop and a car door slam shut. My vision was getting blurry and I glimpsed a familiar person beating up the assholes that tried to rape us. I blacked out.

"Is she going to be okay?"

"When do you think she'll wake up?"

I heard voices speaking around me. I think it was a girl speaking. Wait! It was Alice. But why would Alice sound so worried? The night's events suddenly caught up to me.

How the night was so cold. The weird feeling I had that someone was watching us. The eight strangers who tried to rape us. The fight that Rosalie and I put up to get free. The guy who came to our rescue. All of it came crashing down on me and my eyes flew open.

I was greeted with bright lights and I squinted and waited for my eyes to adjust to the lighting.

I groaned, "Where am I?" I looked around at the familiar place.

"Bella! Thank God you woke up!" Edward exclaimed in relief.

I tried to sit up and Edward, catching on to what I was trying to do, helped me accomplish the task.

"Where am I?" I repeated.

"You're back home. Don't worry, we took care of those rapists," Alice chirped.

"Are you feeling alright, dear?" Esme asked, concern lacing her voice.

"I'm fine. Where's Rose?" I asked groggily. My voice sounded horrible. I must have been out for a while.

"Right here," she made her way to me, "Do you know who this guy is?" she asked curiously, pointing at someone behind her.

A figure stepped from his previous position and I got a look at him. He looked like the guy I saw beating up those rapists and I felt a wide smile tug on my lips as I recognized who he is.

"Garrett!" I shouted happily. I jumped from my sitting position and tackled him into an embrace.

"Hey Bells! Glad to know you're excited to see me," he laughed amusedly and hugged me back.

"I thought you were in California. When did you get back?" I asked, smiling widely.

"I got back two days ago. We have our semestral break and we were allowed to go back home for Thanksgiving."

"Where are you staying at? I'm sure mom and dad would want to see you!"

"I already visited them yesterday but I was quite surprised that you are living with somebody else," he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

I shoved him and muttered, "Shut it." Blushing as red as a tomato at his joke.

Someone cleared their throat and I blushed at ignoring the others while Garrett and I bantered.

I looked at Edward and he had his eyebrows scrunched up and was looking between Garrett and I. I'm not sure but I think I saw jealousy in his eyes.

I blushed and began the introductions, "Everybody this is Garrett, my _cousin_."

I stressed the word cousin so that none of them would get the wrong idea. I didn't want Edward thinking that I was a slut now, would I?

I saw Edward visibly relax at my words and finally smile his crooked grin again instead of the glare that he wore earlier.

"Esme, Carlisle; this is Garrett Swan," I began, "Garrett these are Esme and Carlisle Cullen." I gestured between them and they shook hands.

"These are Rosalie and Emmett Cullen," I introduced them and Rosalie hugged Garrett.

"Thank you for saving us earlier. We really appreciate it," Rosalie beamed.

"Yeah, thanks man," Emmett added and gave Garrett one of those one armed manly hugs.

"These are Alice and Jasper Cullen," I gestured to the pair and they nodded their heads in acknowledgement.

"Last but not least; meet Edward Cullen," I hesitantly murmured.

To my surprise, they both smiled and hugged each other.

"Thanks for saving her," Edward grinned.

"No problem. No one messes with my little sis," he chuckled good naturedly and added, "Take care of her, okay? You hurt her; I will rip your handsome little head off."

"Wouldn't even dream of it," He smiled at me, his eyes shining.

At least they seem to like each other.

* * *

The bell rang and as I got out of the classroom, I was met with a guilty looking Alice.

"Bella! Come on, let's get to lunch!" She grabbed my arm and dragged me excitedly to the cafeteria.

She was bouncing excitedly as we joined the queue for the lunch line and waited impatiently. Once we got our food she hurried off to our seats and scanned the room for someone.

"Who are you looking for?" I asked curiously.

"Rosalie," came her short reply.

"May I know why?" I chewed my club house sandwich and looked at her questioningly.

She ignored my question and shouted, "Rose!"

She might have gotten the attention of the whole cafeteria but didn't seem embarrassed in the slightest.

Rosalie ran to us and looked excitedly at Alice, "Did you tell her yet?"

"No. I wanted to wait for you so we could tell her together," Alice answered giddily.

"What's going on?" I asked suspiciously.

"Nothing," they both said simultaneously and avoided my gaze.

"Come on. I'm not stupid. Something is going on and I want to know now," I demanded.

Rosalie nudged Alice and hissed, "You tell her."

"No you tell her," Alice whined.

"I'm not the one who didn't ask for her permission," Rosalie fired back.

"You came up with the idea," Alice retorted.

"You tell her."

"No, you tell her."

"Enough!" I shouted, throwing my hands up in exasperation, "Just spit. It. Out," I whispered menacingly.

"Well you see Bella," Alice started.

"We saw this poster on the bulletin board and," continued Rosalie.

"We kind of thought that it would be a great idea to participate in it since it was for charity," continued Alice.

"So we kind of signed the three of us up for it," finished Rosalie grinning hesitantly.

I took a deep breath, "If it's for charity, it couldn't be that bad, right?"

I looked at them and asked, "What are we going to do that got you all freaked out in telling me?"

"Yeah, about that…," Rosalie trailed off hesitantly.

"Just. Tell. Me. What. It. Is," I demanded.

"," Alice speed talked.

"Huh? Could you repeat that please? And much more slowly this time," I requested.

"The school is going to have a beauty contest and the money raised will be given to charity and there is going to be a talent portion and fashion show and many more that includes dresses?" Alice said or more like questioned hesitantly.

I was shocked into silence. They did what?

"MARY ALICE CULLEN AND ROSALIE LILLIAN CULLEN, I AM GOING TO KILL BOTH OF YOU!" I screeched and the two of them bolted out the door.

I ran after them and blew up some more once I caught them hiding in a cubicle in the ladies' restroom.

"Please don't kill us Bella. Think about the children that will benefit from the beauty contest," they pleaded with me as they cowered inside the cramped cubicle.

I glared at them and huffed, "Fine, but it's only for the children. You lose any chance of giving me makeovers and both of you will never do this again. Agreed?"

"Agreed," they replied in unison.

"You can get out of there now. That looks like a pretty uncomfortable position," I grinned and got out of the bathroom.

This beauty contest is definitely not a good idea. Stupid school.


	5. Beauty Contests

_**A/N: Here's the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it! **_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. Stephenie Meyer does. **_

**Chapter Five: Beauty Contests**

I was marginally calm about the upcoming beauty contest until I found out the date.

It turns out it would be in two days. I only had two freaking days to harness a talent, prepare my self for the Q&A and walk properly in heels. I could already tell this would not be easy.

"Alice. How in the world will I walk in these heels?" I grumbled. We were at the mall and Alice was trying to fit me into 3 inch stilettos.

"Don't worry Bella, you'll do fine. Come on, why don't you try walking around in them and see?" Alice encouraged excitedly.

"Fine," I sighed exasperatedly. I rose from the seat and tried to steady myself in the heels. When I regained my balance I tried to walk- or maybe wobble would be a better term- around and get the hang of it.

"That's great Bella. You're doing fantastic," Alice complimented a little too early because at that moment, I stumbled in the heels and fell down on my face.

I groaned and rolled over, "I think flats would be better," Alice smiled sheepishly.

"You think so?" I muttered sarcastically.

We exited the store after buying a pair of black flats that would definitely compliment the strapless midnight blue dress we bought that had a sweetheart neckline and ended just above my knees. I was going to wear that for the semi-formal wear.

"Can we go home now?" I whined at Alice. We passed a store that had a big sign saying SALE and suddenly Alice can't hear a thing I say.

I tried to sneak out of the packed store before Alice could rope me into wearing a hundred dresses again. I mean, Alice was alright. She doesn't really bug me to go shopping every chance she gets but if she's on a mission, then expect there'll be plenty of other excuses to come your way which will delay you from going home.

I slipped past the throng of people and made my way to a small cozy looking bookstore that we passed earlier. It had soft orange lights and couches spaced everywhere so that the customers could read some of the already open books in the store.

I immediately headed for the classic section and grabbed a copy of Pride and Prejudice. It was one of my favorite books and since Wuthering Heights didn't have an open copy, I settled for Austen. I dumped myself on one of the couches and lost myself in the world of frilly dresses and positions in society.

"Hey, Bella," a voice said behind me. I jumped in surprise and dropped the book to the ground.

"What are you doing here? Aren't you with Alice?" I turned around to see Rosalie standing in front of me with her hands full of various shopping bags.

"Jeez, you scared me there," I muttered; placing my hand on top of my heart, breathing rather heavily.

She arched her eyebrow and smiled.

"I snuck away from Alice. She really does take everything to another level," I chuckled. An expression of realization spread across her face and she nodded her head slowly.

"I understand. I used to do that too but then she got upset with me on my third attempt. I had to make up for it and did something to cheer her up," she giggled, reminiscent.

"Do you think she'll get mad at me?" I asked worriedly. I did not want to upset Alice; I was just tired of walking around all day and practically camping out in dressing rooms so I sneaked out.

"Nah. It'll be okay," she assured me, "Come on then. We should probably find her before she starts to freak out."

We weaved our way across the crowd of shoppers and stopped in front of a packed store full of women. Rosalie took pity in my soul and told me to wait in one of those benches while she went inside and got Alice. I sat down on one of the benches and after a few minutes, the two of them came back out. I joined them and was immediately under Alice's inquisition.

"Where did you go? I've gotten all worried over you! Why did you even leave in the first place? I thought I would have to send a search party out for you," she rambled on, shooting questions at me left, right and center.

"Calm down Al. I just went to the bookstore to rest my feet. Don't worry. Everything's fine," I soothed her. She took a few deep breaths and came back to her usual quirky self.

"By the way, what are you guys doing for the talent portion?" Alice asked us, bouncing excitedly.

"Well, I know I would be dancing," Rosalie shrugged. Rosalie was a ballerina. She started taking lessons when she was only seven and it really paid off in the long run. She was very good at it and she seemed to be enjoying it as a past time.

"I'm going to be singing with Jasper. I already told him and he agreed at once," Alice smiled brightly.

"More like forced to agree," Rosalie muttered under her breath. I muffled a laugh with my hand and Alice asked, "What was that?"

"Nothing," Rosalie and I said at the same time. Alice looked at us suspiciously but let it go.

"What about you Bella?" Alice turned to me.

"I have absolutely no idea," I shook my head in defeat. It was partially a lie since I was thinking about singing but of course I wouldn't want to embarrass myself by suggesting it. It was, after all, a hidden talent.

"I'm sure you could figure something out," Alice grinned. We finished the day off with eating in a diner and going home.

* * *

I dragged myself to the lunch table and plopped down on my chair. Everyone was chatting animatedly with each other as I groaned and put my head in my hands.

"Is something wrong Bella?" asked a concerned Edward.

"I'm fine. Just worried about tomorrow," I grumbled. The beauty contest was tomorrow and I still didn't have a plan for the talent portion.

"Why are you worried? I'm sure you'll do great," Edward whispered encouragingly in my ear.

"I don't have anything prepared for the talent portion," I moaned dejectedly.

"Hmmm," Edward contemplated, tapping his index finger on his chin, "How about I meet you in the music room after classes?"

"Okay," I mumbled without another thought.

He chuckled, amused by me and ruffled my hair. I glared at him and made no attempt to fix it.

* * *

It was dismissal time and I was walking down the halls to the music room. I could hear piano playing as I opened the door and found Edward sitting on the bench.

"Hey," Edward greeted me with a breath taking smile.

"Hey is for horses," I grumbled, standing in front of him.

He patted the space next to him on the bench and I sat next to him as I dropped my bag on the floor.

"How about I help you out for your presentation?" Edward suggested.

"I could use all the help I can get," I sighed.

"Do you have any songs in mind? Maybe you could sing."

"I did think of singing 'How to Touch a Girl by JoJo'."

"Maybe you could sing that," Edward agreed, smiling brightly.

I started playing the song and I could tell Edward was surprised that I knew how to play the piano.

_Mmm_

_I think I could like you  
I already do  
Feelings can grow but  
They can go away too  
You're takin my hand  
Lookin into my eyes  
Don't be in a rush to  
Get me tonight_

_Feel somethin happenin  
Could this be a spark?  
To satisfy me baby  
Gotta satisfy my heart_

_Do you know how to touch a girl?  
If you want me so much  
First I have to know  
Are you thoughtful and kind?  
Do you care what's on my mind?  
Or am I just for show?  
You'll go far in this world  
If you know how to touch a girl_

_Do you know how to touch, know how to touch a girl?  
Do you know how to touch, know how to touch a girl?_

_I think I could like you  
But I keep holding back  
Cause I can't seem to tell  
If you're fiction or fact  
Show me you can laugh  
Show me you can cry  
Show me who you really are  
Deep down inside_

_Do you feel somethin happenin?  
Could this be for real?  
I don't know right now but tonight we'll reveal_

_Do you know how to touch a girl?  
If you want me so much  
First I have to know  
Are you thoughtful and kind?  
Do you care what's on my mind?  
Or am I just for show?  
You'll go far in this world  
If you know how to touch a girl_

_Bring me some flowers  
Conversation for hours  
To see if we really connect  
And baby if we do  
Ooh I'll be givin all my love to you  
Ohh_

_Do you know how to touch a girl?  
If you want me so much  
First I have to know  
Are you thoughtful and kind?  
Do you care what's on my mind?  
Or am I just for show?  
You'll go far in this world  
If you know how to touch a girl_

_Do you know how to touch, know how to touch a girl? (Yeah, yeah)  
Do you know how to touch, know how to touch a girl?_

_You'll go far in this world  
If you know how to touch a girl_

I finished singing the song and Edward clapped at my performance.

"Amazing," he breathed. He looked dazed and impressed.

I blushed profusely and smiled at his reaction.

"I think you'll do great tomorrow. Don't worry Bella, I have no doubt in my mind that you could win this thing," he grinned.

I bumped my shoulder with his and asked him, "Do you play?"

"Yes I do. Want to hear?" He offered.

I nodded my head excitedly and I must have looked like a bobble head since Edward chuckled under his breath and said something I didn't quite catch.

"Did you say something?" I asked.

"Nothing," he shook his head and started playing.

A beautiful melody filled the room. It was so magnificent that I felt undeserving of even sitting next to him. My performance was nothing compared to his. He played so beautifully and by the end, I had tears in my eyes. He bowed his head down on the piano as the last note resonated throughout the room.

"That was beautiful. Did you write that?" I sniffled.

"Yeah. Did you like it? I wrote it for Esme and Carlisle on their anniversary," he said hesitantly.

"I love it. It's wonderful," I beamed at him.

He looked at me and lifted his thumb. He brushed away the tears falling from my eyes and held my face in his hands, caressing it.

"I'm glad you like it. Please don't cry," he whispered, looking into my eyes with his smoldering gaze.

I nodded and dried the tears with my fingers as his hands fell to his lap. He looked like he wanted to say something else but thought otherwise.

"Let's go home. I bet you need to have your beauty sleep or else Alice will strangle me in my sleep," he joked.

I giggled like a school girl and hitched my bag on my shoulder.

"Let me have that," Edward took my backpack from me and swung it on his back.

"No it's okay. I can carry it," I tried making a grab for my bag but he just became much more stubborn.

"Fine," I huffed and crossed my arms in front of my chest. I might have acted annoyed but I was giddy inside because of his gentlemanliness. We marched our way to his car and sped home.

* * *

It was the day of the contest and I was a nervous wreck. I kept fiddling with my hands all day and almost biting my nails to stumps. Good thing Alice yanked my hand from my teeth before I could do any real damage to the perfectly manicured nails that she worked so hard on the night before.

"Alice, what if I mess up? What if I trip and fall in front of everyone? What if-…?" I started hyperventilating and I could feel the panic blocking my throat.

_I can't breathe. I can't breathe! Oh my gosh, I'm going to die! _I freaked hysterically. I started gasping for breath, looking like a fish out of water.

"Bella, relax. Breathe, Bella. Breathe. Hee-hoo. Hee-hoo," Alice instructed and started making breathing sounds. She was looking at me with wide eyes and was frantically waving her hands to gesture breathing.

I tried following what she commanded but it seemed to have the opposite effect.

_I'm going to mess up! I'm going to die! The cookies were going to take over the world! _I wasn't making any sense and I knew full well that I was going insane.

I didn't want to do this and it's not like anybody asked my permission to join this. Now I couldn't breathe and it's their entire fault!

"Bella, breathe! Think about the children! Breathe!" Alice was starting to freak out also. I must have been turning blue.

I only responded by gasping for air and clutching my throat. Finally, I got my respiratory system to function and I heaved in a huge breath.

"Bella, for a second there I thought I was going to lose you!" Alice exclaimed in relief. She clutched her chest and was breathing rather hard.

"Alice, I can't do this! I simply can't! Think about all the things that could happen!" I started rambling crazily, "What if my voice broke while I'm singing? What if I forget the words to the song?" I started biting my fingernails again in agitation, "Or worse; what if I forget the notes?"

I was freaking out pretty badly and I'm pretty sure I left my mind when I went to school. Alice seemed to think that the perfect cure to my nerves was slapping me across the face. Hard.

"OUCH! What did you do that for?" I rubbed my cheek where she probably left an imprint of her hand.

"You were losing your mind. I had to find some way to bring you back to earth," she shrugged nonchalantly and continued eating her salad.

I rolled my eyes and picked my fork at the pasta on my plate. I didn't feel like eating. It would probably end up in the toilet anyway what with my stomach churning in anxiety. I looked around the cafeteria and people watched instead.

I observed everyone eating and searched for Edward, Emmett, Rosalie and Jasper. They had the same class together and their teacher took it upon himself to get lost in the discussion and asked –well more like _ordered_- the students to stay for a couple more minutes after the bell rang.

There were a lot of people bustling around; there was a guy in a table in the corner of the room picking his nose then flicking out his tongue to taste his snot. _Eeww. _There was a freshman who had a bond paper stuck on his back saying, 'kick me'. There were a couple of guys in another table, pointing at the unsuspecting freshman and laughing like hyenas.

I frowned and got up from my seat.

"Where're you going?" I vaguely heard Alice ask.

I made my way to the bespectacled girl reading a book and was hunched over like she wanted to keep to herself. She had brown hair peeking out from under a beanie covering her whole forehead and almost hiding her eyes. It reminded me of myself when I was a freshman. Hell, she reminded me of myself a week and a half ago.

I tapped her on her shoulder and she turned around to look at me with terrified eyes.

"Can I sit with you?" I asked, uncertainty coating my voice.

She just nodded her head and looked back at her book. She really was like me. I didn't have friends before and I was painfully shy so I always sat in my own table.

"I'm Bella Swan. What's your name?"

"Bree Tanner," she answered in a timid voice. She peeked at me from beneath her glasses and squeaked a little when she saw I was looking.

"It's nice to meet you Bree," I smiled softly, "What are you doing tomorrow?"

"Nothing." Her whisper was barely audible and her cheeks colored red.

"Why don't you hang out with me and my friends after school tomorrow? There's a football match and I was wondering if you wanted to go."

"You're a senior." She stated flatly.

"You're a freshman," I answered back lightly.

"Why would you want to hang out with me?" she asked curiously.

"Because I want to. You remind me of myself and it seems like we have lots in common," I grinned.

"You're not befriending me because of a dare, are you?" She hedged cautiously.

"Why would I do that? Besides, I'm sure my friends will love you."

I looked over to our table and found the five of them staring at me in confusion. I turned back to Bree who looked like she was having an internal battle with herself. She must have made up her mind because she suddenly beamed at me.

I grinned widely and squealed, "Great! You can meet them now!"

She was taken by surprise as I grabbed her hand and hauled her to our table. I put my arm around her shoulders and surreptitiously removed the paper on her back and crumpled it up in my fist.

"Hey guys! I want you to meet Bree Tanner," I told them cheerfully as we reached the table. I sat down on my seat the patted the seat next to me for Bree to sit on. She slid on the seat hesitantly, like one of us would reprimand her for joining the table.

"Hi Bree! It's nice to meet you!" Alice squealed excitedly and got up from her chair to hug her fiercely. Bree was stunned but hugged back. "We will be best friends!"

"It's nice to meet you too," Bree responded in her unsure, timid voice.

The others greeted Bree with a couple of 'it's nice to meet you' and 'welcome to the group'. Bree smiled tentatively in response to everyone and seemed to be relaxing in her seat from her stiff position.

"Bella, what happened to your cheek?" Edward suddenly asked in a worried tone. He reached out his hand to examine the red mark on my face.

"I'm just blushing," I assured him hurriedly. I glanced at Alice and saw she was looking down at her food with a guilty expression.

"I'm pretty sure it's impossible to blush with only one cheek," Edward raised an eyebrow and waited for me to tell him what happened.

"There's a first for everything," I mumbled, almost inaudibly.

He sighed. "Bella," he said in a stern voice. I could tell he wasn't going to give up so I looked at Alice for help and she was looking back with terror in her eyes.

"Fine," I sighed, "I was having a panic attack and started hyperventilating so Alice helped me breathe normally again then after that I began spewing what ifs and almost hyperventilated again so Alice did the only thing she could think of. She slapped me so that I would stop panicking unnecessarily," I rushed out and hoped that Edward didn't understand what I said.

Unfortunately Edward heard everything perfectly and proof of this is his very red face and clenched fist. He was glaring at Alice who was cowering behind Jasper. I immediately tried to calm him down by holding his clenched fist in one of my own and rubbing circular patterns on his back with my other hand.

"Calm down Edward. It wouldn't be good if you let your anger get the best of you," I said in hopefully a soothing voice, "We were both freaking out and it's a good thing Alice brought me back to earth before I started choking on air." I smiled at him and his face gradually returned to its normal color.

He turned his head to stare into my eyes and we stayed like that for a while, waiting for his breathing to even out. I smiled at him and squeezed his hand and he squeezed back while a grin started forming on his face.

"You should apologize to Alice," I whispered in his ear. He pouted but nodded his head in assent nevertheless.

"Sorry for glaring at you and almost losing my temper, Al," he spoke sincerely.

"No problem," Alice answered and went back to her cheerful mood.

The bell sounded and I turned to Bree and said, "I'll see you at the game tomorrow, okay?"

She smiled and nodded her head. We all went to classes after I told Alice and Rosalie what I said to Bree.

* * *

We were now in the gym for the beauty contest and I tried not to let the nerves show. I was wearing the casual wear first which consisted of dark wash skinny jeans, a white tank top with a black leather jacket on top and fingerless gloves and my black hi top chucks to complete the look.

The program was starting off with the presentation of contestants wearing their casual attire then the contestants will show their talent and then come out in their semi formal wear and have the Q&A then we will all come out wearing our formal wear and the judges will announce the winner. Thank goodness we didn't have to wear a swimsuit! It was so simple that I was so relieved.

We all lined up and good thing I was between Alice and Rose. It helped ease my anxiety a little. The music started and we went in one by one to introduce ourselves. I was second to the last and I tried to keep my breathing even and stop myself from freaking out.

Alice went in and the crowd cheered for her and some people wolf whistled. I could vaguely hear her introducing herself in her chirpy voice. The crowd loved her.

The host announced, "Here is contestant number 7!"

Rosalie squeezed my hand and I took a deep breath before going out to the stage. There was a spotlight directed on the middle of the stage and I walked shakily to the mic and barely noticed the loud applause and catcalls.

"Hello, I'm Bella Swan and I love to play the piano," I said and managed a smile. It wasn't that bad although I was a bit uncomfortable at all the eyes staring at me.

I went to stand next to Alice and Rosalie was called in next. Everyone went wild for her and when she spoke, she had the crowd wrapped around her fingers. She made her way next to me when she finished her introductions. The host said something else and we all went backstage for the talent portion.

The other contestants showed their talents and some were actually good. Well, except for Lauren and Jessica who were dancing on stage. They were stiff and just plain horrible to watch.

Alice was great. She and Jasper sang 'Lucky by Jason Mraz and Colbie Calliat'. The audience burst into applause once they finished their performance.

It was my turn and I was waiting for the personnel to finish preparing the stage. They had to bring in the piano from the music room.

"Now we have our next contestant, Bella Swan singing and playing the piano. Let's give her a round of applause!" The emcee announced cheerfully.

I breathed in and strode to the piano. I sat down on the bench and felt a little self conscious because of the eyes upon me but didn't let it freak me out.

"I'm going to sing 'How to Touch a Girl by JoJo'. I hope you guys like it," I said on the mic. I started playing the keys and sang the first few lines.

_Mmm_

_I think I could like you  
I already do  
Feelings can grow but  
They can go away too  
You're takin my hand  
Lookin into my eyes  
Don't be in a rush to  
Get me tonight_

I sang with all my heart. I just hope that the green minded students in this school won't get the wrong idea from the title and lyrics of the song.

_Feel somethin happenin  
Could this be a spark?  
To satisfy me baby  
Gotta satisfy my heart_

I closed my eyes and lost myself in the music. I could feel the eyes of the audience on me but I could really care less.

_Do you know how to touch a girl?  
If you want me so much  
First I have to know  
Are you thoughtful and kind?  
Do you care what's on my mind?  
Or am I just for show?  
You'll go far in this world  
If you know how to touch a girl_

_Do you know how to touch, know how to touch a girl?  
Do you know how to touch, know how to touch a girl?_

_I think I could like you  
But I keep holding back  
Cause I can't seem to tell  
If you're fiction or fact  
Show me you can laugh  
Show me you can cry  
Show me who you really are  
Deep down inside_

_Do you feel somethin happenin?  
Could this be for real?  
I don't know right now but tonight we'll reveal_

_Do you know how to touch a girl?  
If you want me so much  
First I have to know  
Are you thoughtful and kind?  
Do you care what's on my mind?  
Or am I just for show?  
You'll go far in this world  
If you know how to touch a girl_

_Bring me some flowers  
Conversation for hours  
To see if we really connect  
And baby if we do  
Ooh I'll be givin all my love to you  
Ohh _I belted out and the audience erupted into applause.

_Do you know how to touch a girl?  
If you want me so much  
First I have to know  
Are you thoughtful and kind?  
Do you care what's on my mind?  
Or am I just for show?  
You'll go far in this world  
If you know how to touch a girl_

_Do you know how to touch, know how to touch a girl? (Yeah, yeah)  
Do you know how to touch, know how to touch a girl?_

_You'll go far in this world  
If you know how to touch a girl_

I bowed my head on the ivory keys and heard an explosion of hands. I looked up to the audience and saw them standing up. I was getting a standing ovation and I loved it!

I smiled widely and searched the crowd of people for green eyes and found them twinkling in happiness. He was grinning at me and mouthing, 'I told you so'.

I beamed and waved at him. I got up from my seat and bowed. I was met by Alice backstage squealing in delight.

"You did great Bella," Rosalie complimented. She hugged me and Alice, not wanting to be left out, joined us and we had a group hug.

"Good luck Rose," I smiled.

"Thanks," she replied. She danced out to the stage as the host announced.

"She wasn't even that great," Lauren sneered at me while talking to Jessica. She flipped her hair back and it hit Alice in the face.

Alice looked like she was going to strangle her so I grabbed her arms and held her back. It wouldn't do to stoop down to her level.

"You're just jealous Lauren. Just because Bella got the crowd on their feet and you just received a couple of polite claps it doesn't mean you should be petty about it," Alice pretended to flip her hair at Lauren which was impossible since her short hair couldn't reach that far.

Lauren just glared back and Alice and I went to watch Rose's performance.

There were many guys cat calling and a lot of people were mesmerized by her movements. She was very graceful and after a minute I too was under her spell.

I clapped loudly as well as Alice once she finished her performance and the three of us went into the dressing rooms to change into our semi formal wear.

We went through the Question and Answer portion relatively well in my opinion. The host asked us a question and we answered in an honest way and didn't try to say some unrealistic things. Unfortunately for Lauren and Jessica, brains were necessary in the Q&A which they lacked.

"Miss Stanley, your question is: Do you think that Jane Austen is a feminist? Why? Why not?" The host asked her.

"I think she is a feminist since she is a girl right?" Jessica answered.

"Why?" The host asked.

"She's a girl and she's like female," Jessica replied clueless.

"Have you even read her books?"

"Of course I have! She's like, my favorite author," she giggled.

"Name one book," he challenged.

"Harry Potter?" She asked hesitantly.

The host raised his eyebrows and the audience erupted into laughter. Jessica's face reddened and she hurriedly said, "I was only joking!"

"Yeah, right," he rolled his eyes and called the next contestant forward.

The contest ended with us in our formal wear and awaiting the judge's decision.

I held Rose and Alice's hands tightly as the host came forward holding a white envelope in his hands.

"The second runner up is contestant number…" he trailed off as drum rolls sounded around the hall, "SIX!"

The crowd burst into applause and Alice hurried forward to receive her sash and prize. She said a thank you speech and skipped back to my side.

"The first runner up is contestant number… SEVEN!" Everyone erupted into cheers and I dazedly made my way to center stage to receive my prize.

"Thanks to everyone for coming today and thank you for this prize. Have a good night!" I was back to my shy self and blushed as everyone was cheering.

"The winner is contestant number… EIGHT!" The whole room exploded with cheers and catcalls. Rosalie stepped up to the center and was crowned the winner.

The rest of the girls groaned and stomped off the stage while Alice and I cheered for Rosalie. She was really beautiful inside and out even if she is a little tough sometimes. She deserved to be crowned a beauty queen.

We hugged Rose after she gave her acceptance speech and we all made our way off the stage to our 'husbands'.

"Have fun?" Edward grinned at me. He swept me up into a hug and whispered in my ear, "I told you so."

I smiled and rolled my eyes, hugging him back.

"Yeah, yeah. You're right. Now can you please stop saying 'I told you so'?" I whined. Yup, I whined. Isabella Swan whined like a baby.

He laughed heartily. "Never whine again and I will never say 'I told you so'. Deal?"

"Deal."

He chuckled lightly again and leaned in to whisper, "You were great out there. You looked absolutely breath-taking."

I blushed. "Shut up."

"No, really. You look beautiful tonight," he insisted, sincerity in his eyes.

"If you say so," I said in a doubtful voice and pursed my lips.

"Really."

"Whatever," I answered as I blushed profusely. I buried my face on his chest to hide my red face.

He just chuckled and unexpectedly threw me over his shoulder and spun around.

I squealed and giggled. "Edward stop that! You're making me dizzy!"

"No can do, sweetheart."

"Put me down!"

"Nope."

"Edward…" I warned with an undertone of humor in my voice.

"Fine." He pouted as he put me down.

We smiled at each other and were lost in our own world when we heard someone clear their throat.

We spun around to find the rest of the gang grinning at us in amusement and had a knowing look in their eyes.

"What?" I asked self consciously.

"Nothing! Nothing at all," they said simultaneously. They wore masks of innocence but I knew they were up to something.

"Whatever. Let's just go home," Edward said from beside me. He was also looking at them suspiciously.

"Sure." They all said in synchronization. Something's up and I am going to find out what it is even if it's the last thing I do.

* * *

_**A/N: Please review and tell me what you think! I also want to ask you if you want a happy or sad ending for this story. If it has a sad ending then I'm going to write a sequel but my sister says it should be happy since stretching out the story would only ruin it. So tell me what you think!**_


	6. Football and Evil Schemes

_**A/N: Thanks to all of you guys who reviewed! As long as you review, I'll keep the chapters coming. Everyone wants a happy ending but I'm sorry if I try to prolong the happiness, I'm still not sure where this story is going after the project. We'll know when we cross that bridge. **_

_**I just want to tell you guys that I appreciate your reviews and comments. Thanks and belated Happy New Year! Here's another chapter for Playing House. Enjoy!**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.**_

**Chapter Six: Football and Evil Schemes**

"You have got to be kidding me Alice!"

It was a Saturday morning and Alice was her usual energetic self. She woke me up from a perfectly good dream by jumping on the bed and bouncing up and down excitedly.

It was eight in the morning! Couldn't she be a normal person and sleep in on a Saturday?

"Come on Bella! Get up, get up, get up!" she demanded, giggling like a little girl.

"What's the important occasion that you have to wake me up at an ungodly hour? The game's not 'til this afternoon and I doubt we'll need the whole morning to get dressed," I groaned; burying my head on a pillow.

Edward and the guys left earlier in the morning for another practice. I swear Coach Clapp is going crazy, even trying to squeeze in another practice session the day of the game. But I can't complain. Forks High had been in a winning streak these last few years so I guess he's doing something right.

"You, me, Rose and mom are going to the spa today! We are going to have our girl time and we are bringing along Bree!" she clapped her hands and squealed excitedly.

I've had plenty of bonding times with Renee, trying to keep her out of trouble. She loved to try on a lot of new things like rock climbing and taking yoga classes. It was fun but really exhausting.

"Can't you give me five more minutes of sleep?" I begged.

"Nuh-uh. No can do Bella," she shook her head back and forth with a no nonsense expression on her face.

"I know you well enough that five minutes will somehow turn into an hour," she raised her eyebrows, daring me to disagree.

I didn't because it was true and she knew she got me. Might as well get on with it.

"Fine," I surrendered reluctantly and kicked off the sheets from my legs.

Alice smiled brightly and skipped back to her own room. There really was no fighting the pixie. She _always _got her way.

I just showered and changed into a simple brown shirt and jeans and threw my hair up in a ponytail. I went downstairs when I was done and ate breakfast with Esme and the girls.

"So when are we picking Bree up? Or is she going to meet us at the spa?" I chewed my way through a forkful of eggs and looked expectantly at them.

"About that…" Alice trailed off, biting her bottom lip and avoiding my gaze, "You see, we were hoping to surprise Bree and of course it wouldn't be much of a surprise with her knowing it so…"

"You never invited her, didn't you?"

She nodded and hurriedly said, "We were hoping you would start off the conversation with Bree once we get there because Bree is much more comfortable with you then I would take care of the rest."

I thought about it for a moment and figured, there was nothing bad in their intentions so I let it slide for today. I just shrugged and continued eating my breakfast.

Alice beamed happily at me and chirped, "Thanks Bells!"

We decided that I would ride with Rosalie in her convertible and Alice will drive with Esme in her Porsche.

The ride to Bree's house was spent in comfortable silence. Rose and I just listened to the radio the whole car ride.

We parked in front of Bree's two-story house. It looked a little like my house except they had a wrap around porch and they had next door neighbors while we had the forest. The next house was a small walk from our house.

I got out of the car and walked with Alice to the front porch. Alice raised her small fist and knocked on the door three times. Bree herself opened the door and her eyes widened slightly when she saw us in her doorway.

"Wh-What are you guys doing here?" she stuttered out.

"Hey Bree. Can we come in?" I asked. I don't know where the confidence came from. Normally, I would be just as embarrassed as Bree and I would never have asked in such a straightforward manner. It just wasn't me.

"Sure," she nervously squeaked out and opened the door wider to let us in.

There was a staircase leading upstairs once you enter the house. There was an open doorway to the right that led to the living room and we followed Bree in it. We sat down on the couch and I started to speak.

"We were wondering if you would like to spend the day with us. We're going to go to the game together so we thought it would be better if you hang out with us instead of being alone the whole afternoon."

"Oh," she looked surprised and deep in thought.

It was obvious that no one has ever asked her to hang out with them before. It was foreign to her like it was foreign to me a few weeks ago.

"You don't have to, if you don't want to," Alice quickly added, "but it would be really fantastic if you went to the spa with us. It will be so fun and you'll never regret it. I promise."

Bree bit her bottom lip, contemplating whether to come with us or not. She finally smiled and said, "I guess I could spend the afternoon with you."

"Yehey!" Alice shouted triumphantly and started doing a happy dance, chanting 'we're gonna have a good time! We're gonna have our girl time!'. We all laughed and shook our heads in amusement.

This should be fun.

* * *

_EPOV_

We had a game today and coach was squeezing in another practice session. That man was insane but I couldn't complain since we did win. After a few more exercises and practices, coach let us go.

"Hey Edward!" Jasper called loudly. I finished drinking my water as he and Emmett jogged over to me.

"Think Bella's going to bring a book again?" Emmett asked conversationally.

I just rolled my eyes and shrugged.

"You have to admit Edward. Bella finds those books much more interesting than watching you play," Jasper laughed and bumped knuckles with Emmett.

"He's right. You join all those clubs this year for nothing if she doesn't even notice you. Must be embarrassing to get beaten by a book in getting her attention. Seems like you have a bit of a competition there," Emmett teased and punched my shoulder lightly.

"Shut up," I growled at the two of them and they just chuckled and headed to the locker room to shower and get changed.

I first saw her at a game one night. Her nose was buried in a book and her hair was whipping back from her face. Her eyes were glued to the book instead of watching the game. I remember being a little confused by this girl. Why would she be at a football game if she only came to read? What was the reasoning behind her unusual behavior?

I was fascinated by her. I wanted to know what was going through that mind of hers. I wanted to know more about her.

I started asking questions about her. I asked my siblings and they teased me relentlessly. I asked the secretary, Mrs. Cope, about who she was. I even watched her in the library while she was reading.

I was obsessed and it was getting way out of hand. It was really creepy, I admit. So, I made a plan. I knew that I liked her and that I was falling for her every second even if she didn't know it.

I joined every club I could when our senior year rolled around. I became very active in extra curricular activities just so that she would notice me. It did the opposite.

She still ignored me and continued to find solace in her books. All the girls in school were after me but the one that I really wanted would not even glance my way.

I was just about ready to give up when suddenly we were partnered up in health class. I was ecstatic and I thanked God for giving me this opportunity to spend time with her. I will not let her pass me by. She was a blessing to me and I am not letting her slip through my fingers. I am going to hold onto her with all that I have.

I gulped down the last of my water bottle and made my way to the changing rooms to shower.

* * *

_BPOV_

Spending the afternoon with the four of them was fun. We had our nails done and enjoyed a very relaxing massage.

Bree seemed to be warming up to us. She joined in on the conversations and laughed heartily at our crazy antics. After going to the spa, we went to a nice little Italian restaurant and filled ourselves until we got sick. Not literally, of course.

We giggled at the waiter who tried to flirt with Rosalie and laughed out loud when he switched to Esme who was very red faced by the encounter.

"Hey, Bells. We wanted to talk to you about the upcoming week," Alice said conversationally as I ate my way through a plateful of mushroom ravioli.

"What about it?"

"This week, we get to be pregnant, hormonal women," she replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

"So…?"

"Rose and I were talking one day and we wanted to plan something that will drive the guys nuts," Alice grinned evilly.

An image of Edward, Emmett and Jasper going crazy popped into my head and I knew I was all for it. I nodded my head and asked, "What's the plan?"

"We wanted to include you in the planning so that basically means we've got nothing yet," Alice shrugged.

"What do you think Rose?" I turned to Rosalie who was wolfing down her lasagna. I was doubtful that Rose can finish the lasagna once the waiter brought it to the table. The thing was huge! Now I'm wondering how the hell Rosalie is that thin.

"I thought maybe we could do something really crazy like being sweet one time and then being bitchy just like that," Rosalie snapped her fingers and continued eating her food like it was the last thing she would be eating.

"Mood swings would be a given," Alice nodded her head thoughtfully.

"Why don't we ask someone who has had experience in being hormonal," I suggested and looked pointedly at Esme.

"Who…?" Alice asked confusedly, "Rosalie?"

Rose threw her a glare and just ignored the comment.

"I meant Esme."

"Oh," Alice said in realization, her cheeks coloring in embarrassment, "Sorry Rose, blond moment."

"And what do you mean by that?" Rosalie spluttered incredulously.

"I… that came out wrong! Sorry Rose! I didn't mean anything by it," Alice quickly back tracked.

Rosalie just crossed her arms and huffed in annoyance. She turned her head away from Alice and glared at the window.

"Rose!" Alice whined and tried to pry Rosalie's arms from its position.

I left the two of them to sort things out and turned to Esme and Bree to discuss some plans.

"So what do you think Esme?"

"I wasn't really that hormonal when I was pregnant so I'm not that much help," Esme smiled apologetically.

"How about you Bree?"

"I've never been pregnant so I don't really know," she looked thoughtful for a moment. Suddenly, her eyes brightened up and she smiled widely at me. She leaned in and whispered her idea and I nodded my head in approval and beamed at her.

The boys won't know what hit them.

* * *

We all made our way to the Cullen's house to get changed in what Alice prepared for us. She customized the Forks' Football team's uniform so that it won't fall to our knees once we wear then although; it was still a little loose and comfortable to wear.

Alice gave me a scarlet football jersey that covered the pockets on the black skinny jeans that I wore. It said 'Cullen' on the back and had a number 7 - Edward's jersey number. Rosalie also had 'Cullen' on her back with a number 12 while Alice had 'Hale' on her back with a number 17.

Alice also made sure to make Bree one. She had the name 'Tanner' at her back with the number 00 so that she won't have to worry about matching another guy's jersey number.

Once we finished getting ready, we hopped in Alice's car and drove to Forks High School. She was just like her brother. She liked to drive fast and she never got caught. Not once.

We pulled up in the parking lot and I could feel the excitement in the air. The whole school was here to cheer on our football team. I actually do go to all of the games. I never really understand it but I still like to show up and give my support. Even if it's left unnoticed.

Good thing I brought a book with me. I have never understood the rules of football and always got lost by the second half.

We walked up the stands and sat in the very front, just a little ways from the bench of our football team. The team was in the locker room, probably getting one of those pre-game speeches that you see in movies.

Alice and Rosalie were chatting animatedly with Bree and I smiled at the sight. I had this kind of maternal feeling that was happy that Bree made friends. I was just worrying about what would happen when we graduate. I hope she makes some friends. I have to find a way.

I pulled out my book. The cover had an image of the empire state building in the midst of a thunderstorm and a boy was walking out of the ocean holding a gold sword. It was a children's best seller that I came across one day.

The story was about Greek Mythology in the 21st century. I was intrigued by the book and decided to buy a copy and sit down to read.

I was halfway through the book when I heard the cheering and looked up to see the Forks High team jogging out of the locker rooms. Edward, Emmett and Jasper were in the head of the group and I opted for putting the book down and watching my 'husband' kick some ass.

The game started and everyone was watching with anticipation. A touch down from our team earned cheers and a touch down from the other earned groans and on some occasions, angry yells.

I had no idea what was going on but I just kept track of the game by the crowd's reaction. We mostly had cheers so I guess everything was okay.

Alice, Rosalie and Bree seemed to understand the game so I would ask them sometimes about what happened. I would never admit this but I was staring at Edward the whole game. He had my full attention and I couldn't care less about the other players.

I would wince every time he took a hit and sighed in relief once he gets up and shows me that there was no harm done.

It was really refreshing to finally be able to look at Edward while he was playing. All of the times I attended the football games; I brought a book with me and buried my nose in it the whole time. I only went to the games because Charlie and Renee would often encourage me to go since they plan on having the house to themselves.

I never complained because there is absolutely no way that I was getting in between them. It was their only alone time and I'm happy that both of them are happy.

I gasped loudly as I saw Edward take quite a hit. He was still lying down and after a while I was starting to freak out. I looked to the side and found Alice, Rosalie and Bree having the same expression I did.

We rushed down and made our way to the field to Edward's side. A group of people were surrounding him and Alice screamed at the people to let her through. Some didn't hear her so she was forced to thump them in the back and pull their arms to make way for us. She was getting frustrated since none of them would get the hell out of our way.

"Al, calm down," I whispered in her ear. Her eyes were wide with fear and she had tears in her eyes. I looked helplessly at Rosalie and she nodded at me and tried her hand in making a place for us to pass.

At long last, in what felt like a century which probably has only been minutes, we made it through the crowd of people as I hugged Alice's sobbing body tightly to my side.

Edward was lying down on the grass and Emmett and Jasper were next to him, trying to see if he was badly injured. Alice approached Edward shakily and knelt down beside him.

She was shaking his arm. "Edward, wake up. Please wake up. We're so worried. I promise not to drag you to the mall anymore, just please wake up already," she pleaded with tears running down her face. Jasper was hugging her shoulders while she held Edward's hand tight.

We heard a chuckle coming from Edward and saw him open his eyes. He looked at Alice and grinned triumphantly, "You promised not to take me to the mall anymore."

"Edward! I thought you were dead! You ass, you scared us. Bella was as white as a ghost." She slapped his arm and glared. He just laughed and Emmett extended his hand to help him up.

The others started to clear away and Alice, Rosalie and Bree told me that they were going to see me later. I turned and found Edward walking towards me.

I smiled at him and asked, "Are you okay? That was quite a hit."

"Yeah, I'm alright. I'm as healthy as a horse. Why? Are you worried about me?" He teased but I could see that he actually wanted to know if I worried about him or not.

"Of course I am. I don't want to be abandoned before we even reach the week of kids. I can't be a single parent, you know?" I joked and laughed.

"Don't worry, you'll never be alone. I promise."

"You promise?" I was thinking about the end of the project. I'm pretty sure I would be alone again.

"I promise." He sounded like he meant what he said so I beamed brightly and told him, "You should go. You have a game to win. Good luck!"

I started to turn away but Edward caught my arm and turned me around.

"What? No good luck kiss?" He grinned cheekily.

I blushed and he laughed. He started to turn away and a burst of confidence came through me. I grabbed his arm and turned him around. I quickly pecked him on the cheek and whispered in his ear, "Good luck."

I walked away as quickly as I could and looked over my shoulder to see him touching the cheek that I kissed and looking dazed. I grinned.

"We saw that," Alice said in a sing song voice. She was looking at me mischievously and grinning like the Cheshire cat.

"Saw what?" I decided to play dumb. I knew she wasn't going to drop it but I still had to prolong it somewhat.

"You know full well what I'm talking about."

"No. I don't actually."

"Yes you do."

"No I don't."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"No."

"Yes."

"AHA! Gotcha!" Alice shouted victoriously.

"Whatever."

"Come on! Please tell us, please, please, please…" she pouted and gave me the puppy dog eyes. She knew I couldn't resist those.

"Fine," I sighed reluctantly. "But I'm going to tell you _later_."

"Either way, I get what I want! Word of advice, never try to resist me. I always win," she grinned.

"I know," I sighed and slumped back in my seat.

I watched the game attentively and cheered with everyone when Edward made a touchdown and we won. The guys from the team gathered around Edward and lifted him up in their shoulders. Everyone was shouting in glee and I could tell that the restaurants will be packed today.

We decided to go home before the guys do. They were going to take a while to get out of the crowd so Alice insisted that we go ahead. I knew she was just rushing to pull something out of me.

She texted the guys and we all piled into the car and dropped Bree home.

"Thanks for everything guys!" She cheerfully waved from her front porch as we drove back to the house.

* * *

Once we got back, Alice immediately got out of the car and wrenched my door open. She pulled me out and she and Rosalie led me to her room. They sat me down firmly on the bed and sat in front of me. It felt like the Spanish Inquisition to me by the way they gazed intensely at me.

"We want to know what happened and we want details," Rosalie demanded.

"And no beating around the bush!" Alice added. I rolled my eyes and took a deep steadying breath.

"Where to start… where to start…" I muttered to myself while tapping my pointer on my chin.

"Why don't you start when we left you with Edward?" Alice quickly suggested.

"After you left me, I asked him if he was alright then he said he was okay and teased me about worrying about him so I joked that I didn't want to be a single parent when it's the week for kids then he promised that I will never be alone and I asked 'promise' and he confirmed it. After that I wished him good luck and started to turn away when he caught my arm and asked teasingly about a good luck kiss. He didn't expect me to kiss him so he turned away and I caught his arm and kissed him on the cheek and whispered 'good luck' and started to walk away. When I looked back, he looked dazed," I recounted, speaking swiftly.

The two of them squealed like little school girls and jumped up and down.

"I'm so proud of you Bella!" Rosalie shouted and hugged me, knocking the breath out of my lungs.

"Me too!" Alice squealed and joined the group hug.

"GUYS! I can't… breathe…" I gasped. They eventually let me go but still looked at me like I won the Nobel Prize.

"Okay, let's talk about our plan for next week. We need to make them suffer," Rosalie grinned evilly.

"So Bella. Mind sharing with us your plans?"

"Gladly." I smiled. The boys _definitely _won't know what hit them.

"So here's the catch. The first stage of pregnancy usually comes with morning sickness and unbalanced hormones. There is also a LOT of cravings," I paused for a while. Bree really does know her stuff.

"And…?" Alice asked.

"We pretend to have those symptoms. It's not going to be easy in the morning sickness part but I think we could pull it off." I shrugged.

"Okay…" Alice trailed off, deep in thought.

"Here's what we do. Every morning, starting next week, we wait for them to wake up and we rush to the bathroom. We can do this while eating breakfast or when we're in the car. Then, we will act bipolar. We need to act bitchy to them and give them all that shit girls do in movies when they are pregnant. We need to complain and complain and complain all the time."

"That won't be a problem for Alice," Rosalie smirked at Alice while Alice just rolled her eyes.

"We also get to eat anything we want. We need to confuse them and drive them absolutely crazy. For example, Rosalie asks Emmett to buy pizza then when he gets back she doesn't want the pizza anymore and wants apples. Got it?"

They both nodded their heads and we all exchanged evil smirks.

"I haven't told you the best part yet."

"What is it?" Alice asked excitedly, clapping her hands in anticipation.

"We need to publicly humiliate them. Not around schoolmates of course, since they would know that we aren't really pregnant. We need to go to the mall or a restaurant or a park! When we get there we burst out suddenly at them and start accusing them of anything that comes to mind and then crying and storming out of the place."

"Brilliant!" Rosalie exclaimed.

"We have Bree to thank for that. She thought of it and I'm sure she'll do great in health class in her senior year." I smirked and boasted like a proud mother would.

"Definitely."

This is going to be fun. Let the games begin.

* * *

_**A/N: I wasn't particularly happy with this chapter but please leave a review and tell me what you think! **_


	7. Hormones and Cravings

_**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews! Please review! Your reviews are what keep me going. I hope you enjoy this chapter!**_

_**I would just like to give you a heads up. I will not be updating very fast in a while. I'm going to be busy with school so sorry.**_

_**I have decided to give this story a happy ending but it won't be in high school. That's all I'm going to say. I don't want to spoil the fun.**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. Stephenie Meyer does. **_

**Chapter Seven: Hormones and Cravings**

Once again, the junior and senior classes filed in the gym for another health class meeting. I was excited for this week's assignment. I guess I wouldn't really feel this way if I was really pregnant but I'm not so I say, bring it on.

It seems like the partners were getting along really well. No one was strangling each other so I think that's an improvement. But that's all about to change once this week shows its scorn on the guys.

All the girls were excited. Maybe they also have a plan made for this week.

"This week is your 'pregnant' week, so to speak. Ladies, it's time to get creative, if you know what I mean," Mrs. Bryans winked conspiratorially at the girls. Some giggled while the rest stayed silent and kept their faces blank.

"Behind me, I have the women's fake bellies," she gestured over her shoulder at what looked to be like a small mountain of round, strappy things.

_Oh no! Damn it! I forgot we even had to wear some, _I swore in my head. This will be harder than I thought. What a bummer.

All of the girls were glaring at the fake bellies like they just killed their favorite puppy. I know how they feel. Being all excited about scheming and then when you are ready for your plan in action, this just has to ruin the fun!

"Girls, line up for your fake bellies! It's time for you to experience having a bun in the oven!" Mrs. Bryans enthusiastically shouted.

A collective groan came from the girls and we all fell in line to get our bellies. Every one of us moved sluggishly to the table and lifted one belly. We sat back down on the bleachers and waited for everyone to get their bellies.

"I will remind you that you cannot take off the belly except for a shower. If you do, your grade will be reduced according to my judgment and believe me, I _will _know," she gazed around sternly. "Okay, ladies. Get those bellies strapped up!" She clapped her hands and everyone stood up to try and get the belly on.

"This sucks!" Alice complained; trying to strap the belly on. I too was having the same problem and it seems like Rosalie was the only one who got it on properly.

"Rose, help please," I pleaded with her and she walked over to me and strapped the belly on under my shirt. It was very tricky trying to get the thing on so I was glad Rose came to my rescue.

Rosalie came over to Alice and helped her with hers and after a few minutes, the task was complete.

"Good luck ladies! Have fun!" Mrs. Bryans shouted at the girls. "Class dismissed!"

I tried to walk but the thing was like 10 lbs.! Alice and Rosalie were having the same dilemma and we tried to wobble around.

I couldn't see my feet so I tripped and fell on the ground. I fell flat on my face before anyone processed that I was even falling down.

"Bella!" Edward shouted, worry evident in his voice.

I rolled over on my side and groaned. "This is not helping with my coordination!"

I grabbed Edward's outstretched hand as he tried to help me stand up again.

"Bella, love, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I replied. This clumsy thing is really getting old.

"Are you sure?" He was very much concerned. I could almost hear the gears turning in his head, trying to decide if he should take my word for it.

"I'm sure," I sighed.

I grimaced. The rest were laughing freely at me.

_Laugh it up, folks. Laugh it up. In the end, I'll have the last laugh _I seethed in my mind.

I tried to wobble around again and almost fell down if it wasn't for Edward's fast reflexes. He caught me around the waist and steadied me on my feet.

"Be careful, love," he chuckled.

I rolled my eyes. Edward assisted me the whole day. Either he would hold my hand or hug my waist. This definitely makes up for having to wobble around like a bloated balloon.

Lunch rolled around; time to put our plan into action.

Edward led me over to our table and I sat down carefully on one of the seats. Emmett arrived with Rosalie and Jasper with Alice.

"UGH! This day is the worst! I can't imagine what will happen in the next few days. This is just horrible!" Alice moaned.

"I wholeheartedly agree!" Rosalie groaned.

"Me too," I agreed and laid my head down on the table.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and I turned to look at emerald orbs.

"Would you like me to get you something?" Edward asked.

"Can you get me some pizza? Oh! And a burger," I smiled. The plan is in action.

"Sure. You sure do have an appetite today," he chuckled.

I pretended to glare at him and he just laughed harder. He rose from his seat and made his way to the lunch line.

Alice and Rosalie were already requesting food from their 'husbands'. After the two of them left, Bree arrived at the table and sat beside me.

"Hi, Bree!" We all greeted her simultaneously. She just grinned and said 'hi' back.

"You guys already started the plan?" She smirked.

"Yup." Alice popped the 'p'.

"Thanks for the idea by the way. It's genius!" Rosalie praised her and she just blushed at the compliment.

"Anytime," she whispered.

The guys came back, carrying trays of food. Edward didn't have much in his while Jasper only had a couple of food in it. Emmett's tray was filled with food. I doubt Rosalie asked for all of those.

"Here you go." Edward handed me a plate of pizza and burger.

I bit into the pizza and swallowed it. I tried to act like it didn't taste good so I scrunched up my face into a grimace and dropped it on the plate.

"Is there something wrong with the pizza?" Edward looked at me in concern.

"I'm not hungry for pizza. Maybe I'll just eat the burger instead and you can finish off the pizza?" I suggested innocently.

"Sure." He was looking at me hesitantly. Probably worried if I was sick or not.

I took a huge bite on my burger and chewed fast. It was good but I had to act the plan out.

Alice and Rose were already complaining to Em and Jazz about the food.

"Jasper! How could you give these kind of food to me?" Alice appeared shocked and disbelieving. _Appeared _being the operative word since I knew perfectly well what she was doing.

"You asked me to buy it, didn't you?" He asked in confusion.

"Do you want to make me fat? Huh? Do you?" Alice shrieked. The whole cafeteria was watching the scene unfold like it was some kind of movie.

"I-I d-d-didn't mean that. N-no. I d-didn't intend to make you f-fat," he stuttered out nervously.

"Are you saying you won't love me even if I'm fat?" Alice screamed hysterically. She was a great actress, I'll give her that.

Next to the fighting couple, Emmett and Rosalie were arguing about something too. I wouldn't really say arguing since it was one sided but it was an argument nonetheless.

"Why the hell did you get all these food?" Rosalie shrieked. "Are you trying to make me fat?"

"N-n-no Rosie. I-I-I just thought that you were going to eat for two people, is all," Emmett stuttered, looking like a little kid getting scolded by his mother. He was cowering behind Bree and it really was a sight to behold.

"Are you implying that I'm a glutton? Do you really think I eat for two people with this figure?" Rosalie's glares were like daggers. She gestured to her bloated stomach and Emmett unconsciously nodded his head and muttered under his breath, "Pretty much, yeah."

Rosalie's eyes widened and turned into slits in a second. "WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?" Rosalie shrieked.

I think it's my cue to jump in. Edward was staring open-mouthed at the two while Bree was just holding back giggles from escaping.

I turned to him sharply with hurt in my eyes. "Do you think I look fat?"

I was jutting out my bottom lip and my eyes were glazing over with tears. His eyes widened even more and he quickly replied, "Of course not!"

"You do think I look fat! You're lying! You're trying to give me all of these foods because in your mind you think that I couldn't get anymore fatter, don't you?" I accused him and tried to look heart broken.

It seemed to work because he looked horrified. "I-I-I d-d-don't think you're fat. Believe me! And didn't you a-ask me t-to b-b-buy those f-foods?" He was reduced to a blubbering mess like his brothers. This is going well. _Very_ well.

"Now, you're blaming me? How could you!" I screamed at him. He was shocked to say the least.

My chair scraped the linoleum floor as I stood up abruptly. Alice and Rosalie did too and the three of us exited the cafeteria together. This is just the beginning.

* * *

_EPOV_

_What did I do wrong? _I thought desperately.

I turned to Bree, needing a girl's opinion. "Did I say something wrong?"

She just shook her head and sighed, "Boys."

"What?" I asked confused.

"Why are boys always so clueless?" She muttered to herself and followed the girls out the cafeteria.

This is pretty confusing.

* * *

_BPOV_

We cracked up laughing in the bathroom as we recounted the dumbfound expressions in their faces. It was absolutely hilarious!

"That was great! We should definitely do that again," Alice giggled in her trilling voice.

"You bet! I am so excited for our next plan," Rosalie laughed out.

"It's so fun to watch all of you guys. It's like a soap opera just waiting to happen," Bree remarked laughingly.

"Do you think our plan will work?" I asked them after we have all stopped our crazy laughing mania.

"Of course it will. Trust me Bella, I know these things," Alice winked, tapping her index finger on her forehead.

"Whatever you say, Al. Whatever you say," I chuckled.

* * *

I was working on the worksheet that Mr. Banner assigned us for the experiment and I could feel Edward throwing hesitant glances my way when an announcement came up. We heard static for a few seconds coming from the intercom and after a while, Mrs. Bryans' voice floated through the classroom.

"All junior and senior students will have no classes for the rest of the week due to the health class project. We faculty members observed that the girls are having difficulty walking around wearing the fake bellies so to make it easier for them; classes are cancelled for the rest of the week. Their partners for the project are also excused from classes but they must take care of the girl and attend to her every need. If these are not followed, I could assure you that I have no problem in picking out a suitable letter from the alphabet; preferably the sixth one," her voice warned.

There was a moment of silence in the room when suddenly it seemed like the whole school exploded judging by the loudness of the screams of glee. Mr. Banner tried to get them to sit back down and shut up but his commands fell on deaf ears.

Luckily, the bell rang just a few moments later and everyone ran out of the classroom and into the parking lot. The hallways were crowded and I would have been knocked over if it wasn't for Edward's arm around my waist, holding me tightly to his side. These are the times that I just want to pinch myself to see if I'm dreaming or not.

He pulled me to the wall to let everyone pass through. There were an awful lot of students and I'm pretty sure the freshmen and sophomore students are trying to blend into the juniors and seniors to avoid their last period class.

We waited for the crowd to thin out and finally made our way to his car. We got in and sped home.

"Mom! We're home!" Edward shouted out.

Esme emerged from the kitchen wearing a white apron and greeted us warmly.

"Hi, Esme."

"Hello, dear." She hugged me and proceeded on telling us that she was making cookies and that we could get some if we wanted.

I politely declined and headed to Edward's room. It was hard work going up the stairs with huge belly weighing you down. I had to hold onto the railings just so that I wouldn't trip on the steps.

I was practically swimming in sweat when I reached the top of the stairs. I was heaving breaths and I felt like I just climbed Mt. Everest. I threw my hands up in the air and fist pumped in victory. In my head I was shouting, _Victory is MINE!_

Someone chuckled from behind me and I blushed as I turned around to see Edward trying no to laugh as much as he wants to. I wobbled to the room and flopped down on the bed. I was exhausted and I needed to get some much needed sleep.

My eyes drooped and before I knew it, I was out like a light.

* * *

"Bella," a voice whispered next to my ear. Someone was shaking my shoulder, trying to wake me up I assume. "BELLA," the voice whisper-yelled.

It took me a moment to register that it was Rosalie shaking me awake. I opened my eyes groggily and whispered back, "What is it? What's the matter now?"

"Come with me. We need to talk. Alice called a meeting," she said in an urgent voice. I groaned and dragged myself out of the embrace of a certain person.

It was hard to sit let alone getting up on my feet. The bellies were really troublesome and my back was killing me! I don't know how I even managed to find a comfortable sleeping position. If this is how being pregnant feels then there is no way that I'll let a guy anywhere near me. Not like they would actually notice me of course.

We wobbled quietly to the door and I closed it silently behind me. We wobbled to Alice's room without any complications besides the time that I almost fell on my face.

"What do you want to talk about, Al?" I yawned and stretched my arms above my head.

"We need to verify our plans. I think we need something much more humiliating for the guys. Something that'll befuddle them."

"What do you have in mind Alice? Have any plans?" Rosalie looked as tired as I was while Alice still looked like the energizer bunny.

"That's why I called you here. We need to make a plan before we commence with our other plans," Alice chimed in her high voice.

I was feeling very sleepy and a little light headed. Images keep swirling around in my head. I saw my mothers face, my father, Garrett, Kate, Tanya, Irina, Carmen, Eleazar and all of them seemed to blur together.

I yawned and mumbled sleepily, only half aware of what I'm saying.

"Maybe we could tell the guys we would meet them in a restaurant and make them wait in there for a while then Garrett's girlfriend, Kate, and her sisters come up to them and slide into the empty seats. They flirt with them then we barge in looking livid and accuse them of two timing us and that their children were growing inside of us and all they do is fool around with girls and all that crazy shit."

Silence. Alice and Rosalie were looking at me weirdly, like I sprouted a tentacle from my armpit or something along those lines. I really couldn't care. I just want to sleep.

"What?"

They still looked at me and I started to get annoyed.

"Genius, Bella. All I have to say is you're a genius even if you're half asleep." Rosalie shook her head in awe.

"Can I go back to bed now?" I asked sleepily. I could barely open my eyes.

"Okay. Just be careful, you wouldn't want to trip and damage that brilliant head of yours." Alice still looked amazed by me.

I rolled my eyes and tripped my way back to the comfort of my bed and the arms of the person occupying it.

* * *

The sound of Rosalie, Alice and I barfing without even producing anything on the toilet boil echoed on the bathroom walls. The guys were outside the door and asking us if we were alright and frantically trying to open the door.

We started out our plan earlier this morning when we were eating breakfast. Rosalie was complaining about the food and Alice on the other hand was wolfing down the plate of food in front of her. I pretended to just tolerate the food all the while picking on it.

Emmett was going crazy at Rosalie's whining while Jasper was looking at Alice with wide eyes. Edward was looking at me in concern and trying to encourage me to eat more.

Then, Rosalie pretended to be sick and was covering her mouth with her hand. She ran out to the bathroom and after a while Alice and I followed in her steps with the guys on our heels.

"Rose, baby, are you okay? Do you need anything? Please tell me what's wrong." Emmett's voice floated through the door. Rosalie made her vomiting noise much more loudly.

"Alice, honey, are you alright? Does anything hurt? I'll fix it, just please let us in," Jasper's voice begged from the door. Alice too made her vomiting noise louder.

"Bella, love, is everything okay? Please open the door." Edward requested. I, unlike the other two, halted my vomiting sounds and pretended to rinse my mouth. After a while, Rose and Alice followed my lead.

We opened the door and faced them with gloomy expressions. Our respective partners rushed to our sides and shooted question after question at us.

"I'm fine." I answered. Edward didn't look too convinced. I tried to assure him that nothing was wrong and in the end he gave up and just kissed my forehead and told me to be careful.

Rosalie and Alice also assured their boyfriends but it took them longer because the guys were too freaked out to listen to sense.

"What's the plan for today?" Edward addressed everyone. Carlisle and Esme were away for the entire week claiming that they were having their alone time but we knew that they didn't want to be here in the hormonal stage of the project.

"Why don't we just watch some movies today?" Alice suggested and everyone agreed. We made our way to the living room and Alice picked a movie to watch.

"Edward, Emmett, Jasper why don't you get some snacks?" The guys went into the kitchen and ruffled through it for something to eat.

"Hey guys, what do you think of this movie?" Alice held up a DVD and we nodded our head in approval. The movie was _The Proposal_.

We waited for the guys to come back and when they did, we started the movie.

I was laughing my ass off and reached out for the popcorn. I popped one in my mouth and spat it out.

"What's wrong love?" Edward looked concerned at me. I wonder when he started calling me love.

"I don't want popcorn. Can you get me some ice cream?" I looked up at him and batted my eyes. He grinned and nodded his head.

He came back a second later with the ice cream and offered me the cup.

"No, I don't want ice cream anymore. Can you please get me some pizza?" I requested yet again. I hope he wasn't looking forward to watching this movie because he won't have the time with all the things I will be requesting.

"Okay. I'll just order some. You guys want any?" He asked the rest of the gang.

"Pepperoni please!" Alice requested.

He went to the phone and ordered some. After ten minutes, the pizza arrived and Edward stood up to get it. He emerged a moment later carrying a large pizza box and sat down next to me.

"Here you go." He handed me a slice of pizza and I took it gladly. I started eating some and continued watching the movie. I didn't request anything until halfway through the movie. Edward looked too relaxed so I asked him to get me some juice.

He walked in carrying a glass of orange juice and handed it to me. I sipped at it and said, "No, I don't want this. Can you get me some pineapple juice instead?"

"Sure." He stood up from the couch and got the glass from me. He came back with some pineapple juice and I sipped it again.

"Ugh. I should have asked for grape juice," I grumbled to myself and waited for Edward to offer getting me a grape juice.

"If you don't like it then I'll just get you some grape juice." Edward tried to get the glass from me but I tried to argue that he didn't need to do that.

"No, it's okay. I insist." Edward got my glass and walked into the kitchen yet again. He got out and gave me the glass of grape juice.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

"Can you get me some yogurt?" I asked before he could even sit down.

"Sure." He was still patient. What is happening in this world?

He arrived with some yogurt and before he could say anything else I said, "On second thought, can you get me some chocolate instead?"

"Okay." He still looked calm!

"By the rate you're going Bella, Edward would never watch even 10 minutes of the movie." Emmett chuckled.

"Which reminds me. Emmett can you please get me some ice cream?" Rosalie requested and batted her eyes.

Emmett looked dazed for a moment and got up when he finally snapped out of it. Rose and Alice were giggling at him.

"Here you go." Edward handed me a _Snickers _bar and sat down.

"I hate _Snickers_! Can you please get me something else instead?" I widened my eyes slightly and he smiled and went to the kitchen for the umpteenth time.

"Here you are Rose." Emmett handed her the cup of ice cream.

"When have I ever eaten strawberry ice cream?" Rosalie quirked her eyebrow and Emmett sighed and got a new cup.

"Here's some _Milkyway_."

"No! I want _KitKat_!" I desperately resorted to whining since he is still not going crazy.

"Okay. I'll just get some from the store. We don't have any." He got up and grinned at me before walking out the door and driving away in his car.

I was stunned to say the least and extremely confused. _Why wasn't he exasperated? He was supposed to go crazy!_

I looked at Rose and Alice and they both wore equally stunned looks.

"Here's your vanilla ice cream, Rose." Emmett handed her the cup and flopped down on his seat.

"I don't want vanilla ice cream. I want to eat chocolate ice cream!" Rosalie whined at Emmett.

Emmett sighed in exasperation, "Fine."

He came back a moment later and gave Rose the cup of chocolate ice cream.

"On second thought, I don't want to eat ice cream anymore."

"WHAT? Goodness, woman! I thought you wanted ice cream!" Emmett shouted in annoyance.

I looked at Alice and Rose and saw them trying to hide their smirks.

Alice then tried to order Jasper around and after 6 trips to the kitchen, he went crazy. I was beyond confused. If Jasper and Emmett got annoyed at their girlfriends with only going back and forth to the kitchen, then why wasn't Edward going crazy yet? He had to go out just to buy me a bar of chocolate!

This is giving my mind a workout. I wasn't even Edward's girlfriend, yet he still managed to stay calm when Emmett and Jasper didn't. Maybe he's onto us. Yeah, that's it. Maybe he knows that this was just a plot to make them crazy.

Edward arrived just as Alice was putting in another movie. This time, we were watching _Interview with the Vampire_. I can see the theme of Alice's choices.

"Hey, Bella. Here's your _KitKat_." He handed me the red bar of chocolate.

"Thanks." I smiled at him. I decided to stop my stream of requests and let him watch the movie this time. It seems like he will never snap.

* * *

"Alice, my clothes won't fit! This darned belly makes it hard to do so," I grumbled frustrated.

"That's why I thought ahead. Here you are. I bought maternity clothes before the week even started." She handed me a dress that would probably go pass my knees.

"If that's the case then why didn't you give this to me earlier?" I asked, annoyed.

"It's fun watching you get angry at clothes." Alice giggled. I rolled my eyes and sighed.

We were meeting the guys in the restaurant and Kate and her sisters already confirmed that they would be there. They were just going to wait for the go signal.

After we were all done getting dressed, we got in on Rose's convertible and sped off. I called Kate and told her to start the plan and that we were on our way already.

We arrived ten minutes later and spotted Garrett sitting on one of the tables in the corner. We scanned the crowd and saw Emmett, Jasper and Edward trying to lean away from the three sisters who had their hands on their chests and looking seductively at them.

I was a little jealous at Tanya. She was just so beautiful and they looked like the perfect couple. I know I shouldn't be worried since Tanya is already happily married but I couldn't help myself. It was in my nature to feel this way.

The three of us prepared our outraged looks and wobbled over to their table.

"How dare you?" Rosalie shrieked and pointed at Emmett with her index finger. Emmett looked scared which added to the whole effect very nicely.

"Jasper, I thought you loved me?" Alice shouted. Everyone in the restaurant was watching the whole thing. Most of them wore shocked faces but some wore sympathetic ones.

Jasper looked like a fish out of water. He was opening and closing his mouth in shock. In my opinion, they shouldn't have looked too shocked and scared. They just made the crowd believe that they were guilty.

I turned to look at Edward with tears brimming in my eyes. "I never thought you would do this Edward. I guess I was wrong."

I imagined getting old alone and never being loved by someone. The tears flowed silently down my face.

Edward wore a horrified look and opened his mouth to say something. I held my hand up and shook my head saying, "Save it for the next person who'll believe you."

"I can't believe you could do this to me! I never in all my life thought that I would see you cheating on me with another woman!" Rosalie yelled. "What? Am I not good enough for you? Do you think I'm ugly just because I have a baby bump? Answer me!"

"Why would you betray me? Jazz, I thought we loved each other. Maybe the love was one sided," Alice spoke with heartbreak lacing her voice. She too looked like she was about to cry.

Rosalie glared at Emmett; Alice looked upset while I cried miserably. We were about to exit the restaurant when an old woman approached Edward, Emmett and Jasper's table and reprimanded them.

"You should be ashamed of yourselves. You already had these beautiful women in your lives yet you still seek the company of another. Shame on you! You have already impregnated them and now you upset their already fragile nerves by two timing them! Such disgraceful actions!" The old woman glared at them for a moment longer and turned to us.

She accompanied us outside to our car even though we protested and told her it was unnecessary. She insisted and she watched us drive away after trying to comfort us.

We were silent for a moment in the car and suddenly we were in hysterics.

"That was so hilarious!" Alice gasped in between giggles.

"Hell yeah it was! Did you see the look on their faces? Priceless!" I rolled in my seat laughing my ass off.

"Great acting Bells. Never knew you were that good." Rosalie commented from her seat in the front whilst laughing hysterically like the two of us.

"Me too," I replied. We arrived at the mall and I looked at them questioningly.

"Why are we here?"

"We have to make the boys worry. That's how to make them crazier than they already are at this moment." Alice shrugged nonchalantly like the topic of the boys' sanity was like talking about the weather.

"If you say so."

We entered a clothing store full of dresses. Alice jumped into action like an arrow shot from a bow. The energy bunny is released.

"Bella, can I ask you something?" Rosalie requested while rifling through a rack of dresses.

"Technically, you just asked one but I can allow you another one," I teased and she just smiled in amusement.

"It looked like you weren't acting at the restaurant earlier." She stated.

"Well, that's not exactly a question." I pointed out. She raised her eyebrows at me.

"Is there something bothering you? I know it's not any of my business but I just worry about you. Are you sure you and Edward are okay?" She looked genuinely concerned and I was touched that she cared for me in such a short amount of time.

"I don't know. I just feel like I'm alone all the time. Even when I'm surrounded with people, I feel like I'm always the odd one out. Earlier when I saw Edward with Tanya, I just remembered that I'm all alone in this world." My voice cracked and my eyes brimmed with tears.

"I'm just worried, you know? What if I end up an old woman with a houseful of cats as company? I've always been alone in my life. I never had friends so I never really missed that experience but then you guys befriended me and I realized just how alone I was. I had nothing to lose before but now I have everything to lose." I confided in her. It was just so easy to tell Rose what I felt and my worries were. I felt like I could trust her with my deepest darkest secrets.

"It's okay Bella. You won't be alone. You have us. Don't worry about anything." Rosalie reassured me and rubbed my arms soothingly.

"Thanks Rose," I smiled at her and sniffled a little.

"Anytime." She smiled. "Come on. Let's get us some dresses."

* * *

We got home at about 7 in the evening with our arms full of bags. It was very exhausting going from store to store. I couldn't understand how Alice still managed to skip around. We were being dragged down by the extra pounds on the belly while Alice didn't even seem to notice she gained some pounds.

We were greeted with a hilarious scene as we entered the kitchen to get some water.

The boys were attempting to make dinner. Emmett was looking confusedly at the pot on the stove.

"Why isn't it boiling yet? It's been there for thirty minutes!" He muttered to himself. He forgot the essential part in boiling water. You had to turn the stove on before you boil it.

Jasper was doing much better than Emmett was. He was making the sauce for the spaghetti that I'm guessing they were going to make since the sauce was color red. I presume Emmett was assigned the task of cooking the noodles and failing miserably.

Edward was the most experienced in cooking. He was baking something and didn't even have anything splattered on him like a normal guy would have. They all looked up as we entered and Emmett and Jasper rushed to Alice and Rosalie to apologize over and over again.

I stared at Edward and he stared back. I smiled at him and he walked over to me.

"Look, Bella. I know what you saw looked bad but believe me, I didn't know who those girls were." He pleaded with his eyes for me to understand.

"It's okay. It was none of my business. Don't worry about it. Let's pretend it never happened." I tried giving him a sunny expression but he just shook his head.

"I don't want you to be upset with me. I don't want you to think of me like I'm some pervert who hits on some girl he doesn't know."

"I know you're not that kind of person, so don't worry about it."

"But Bella-" He started to protest but I cut him off before he could finish his sentence.

"It was just a plot! Alice, Rose and I planned it all. Kate is Garrett's girlfriend and Irina and Tanya are her sisters. Both of them are already married and they just agreed to flirt with you guys because I asked them to and even got their husbands' permissions." I explained.

"Oh."

"Sorry but you have to admit, it was pretty funny," I laughed out. "Are you angry with me?"

"Surprisingly, no. It's okay. At least you know that I didn't actually flirt with those girls." He sighed in relief.

"Why do you care so much about what I think about you?" I scrunched up my eyebrows in confusion.

"I don't know. I just don't want to leave you with a bad impression of me. We are going to be spending three more weeks together."

I felt a pang in my chest when he said _leave you_. I suppose it really isn't avoidable. I ignored the sudden shot of pain and smiled at him and decided to help them make dinner all the while holding back tears.

Rosalie heard the exchange and looked at me in worry. She already told Emmett our plan while Alice told Jasper in the corner. I smiled at her regretfully not really knowing what I regretted the most. Getting attached to them or believing that in the end, I will still be welcome with them.

I was going to be alone. There was no way around it. I would just have to enjoy the rest of my time with them.

_**A/N: I'll be waiting for your reviews!**_


	8. Android Robot Babies and a Surprise

_**A/N: Hey guys! I know it's been a while since I've updated but I have a very good reason for that. I was busy. Okay, maybe not a very good reason. Still, I hope you guys would still keep on reading my story. Please review! I really love reading what you think! I'll be looking forward to your comments. I promise to try updating sooner. Anyway, enjoy!**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or any of the characters in this story. **_

**Chapter Eight: Android Robot Babies and a Surprise on the Way**

The babies' wails echoed in the cafeteria walls. Everyone was already frantically trying to hush their robot babies and attempting to find out the problem to no avail.

"Shhh, it's okay. Everything's okay honey. Shhh," I whispered reassuringly to the bundle in my arms and rocked him back and forth. Alice and Rosalie were doing the same next to me.

"What do you think is the matter with them?" Rosalie asked confusedly.

"I don't know. Nothing smells so I'm pretty sure they didn't poop and we just fed them ten minutes ago!" Alice replied.

"I got it! Maybe we should try burping them." I suggested. They nodded their heads in agreement and got the 'burping towels' from the baby bags.

We placed the towels over our shoulders and gently patted the back of the babies with their heads nestled on our shoulder blades. After a while, the baby burped and finally became silent just as the guys arrived with the food.

"What did you do? How did you get them to stop their noises?" Emmett asked in astonishment. Jasper and Edward wore the same wondrous expression as Emmett did.

"It's not rocket science, Emmett." I rolled my eyes.

"But, how did you silence these critters?"

"We just burped them."

"Oh," he said as understanding crossed his face, "Is that why you have a towel full of icky stuff on your shoulder?"

"What?" I whipped the towel from my shoulder and sure enough, there were goo on it that resembled milk. Maybe this is how the milk goes out of their system. It's pee, poop or burp.

"That's gross!" Emmett scrunched his face up in a disgusted expression. He tried to scoot his chair as far away from me as possible. Talk about overreacting!

"You better get over it because I am _so _not taking care of this baby alone and I hereby declare that you are on changing and burping duty." Rosalie announced smugly.

"But Rose! I'm not a girl! I don't know how to do those things." Emmett complained.

"You sure do sound like one." Rosalie muttered and in a much firmer voice than she had used earlier she said, "You are doing it or _no _video games for a whole month!"

"You can't do this to me!" He burst out as we snickered at him. "This is a free country and I have my rights!"

"Yes it is and so do I. If you don't stop whining at this very moment you are going to get more duties than the ones I assigned you! Grow a pair, would you?" Rosalie retorted.

Emmett just pouted and sulked in his chair but seemed to get over it and started eating his lunch quietly. We all laughed at his expression and turned to eat our food.

"Have you named your baby yet?" Alice asked Rosalie through a mouthful of burger.

"I'm thinking about going with Nathan since he's a boy. How about you?" Rosalie replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

"What? You already named our baby and you didn't even tell me?" exclaimed Emmett in indignation. "I thought we were in this together!"

"Oh, shush Emmett! I'm naming him Nathan and that is final! I will not have you naming him 'Emmett Jr.' or anything like those stupid names that you want," she spat.

"What did Emmett want to name him?" Jasper asked curiously.

"He wanted to name the baby Rexter!"

"What?" Edward exclaimed in surprise and after a moment we were all doubled over in laughter.

"I wanted the baby to be a cool dinosaur!" Emmett growled defiantly.

"You want the baby to have the same brain as a Tyrannosaurus Rex?" Alice snorted out.

"Gang up on me now, will you?" Emmett huffed and crossed his arms. Even Rosalie was laughing at Alice's jab.

A loud cry erupted from our table. The babies awoke from their slumber because of our laughter. Immediately everyone was trying to calm the babies down and the rest of lunch was spent cooing at the babies and making funny faces at them.

* * *

_RPOV _

I really worry about Bella sometimes. She would be glowing with happiness one moment and deflating with sadness the next.

I knew she was very insecure the moment I saw her. She would always slump her shoulders forward or hide her blushing face in a curtain of her hair. She also had her nose buried in a book every time I saw her before the project.

Now, she's broken out of her shell a little bit. She would participate in a conversation and she even made friends with somebody else. There were rare moments that I would see her drop her guard and really let everything go with us. But as rare moments go, they were very fleeting.

Edward was another problem. He doesn't seem to see that Bella needs reassurance of his feelings for her. He might think that his body language is as clear as day to any other girl but this is Bella we are talking about. She was definitely _not _just some other girl.

I've seen that he likes her even before the health class project. He never cared for school activities in our junior year but suddenly had a change of heart the next year. He claimed that he just wanted some extra credits but we all know that he didn't really need it. He just wanted to impress Bella.

Recently, Bella has been worried about being alone again. I know it isn't easy for her to make new friends since she has always been comfortable in her solitude. She just exposed herself to heartache once she has accepted us as her friends. And I am adamant that it will not lead to that.

She may be different than other girls but she's still one and a girl is often put in a confusing position where she is unsure of where her relationship with a boy stands. That is where Bella is currently in. To Edward it may appear that they are a couple but Bella is one of those girls who are unassuming. She doesn't really consider one date as an indicator of two people being an official couple.

I know that Bella envisions her future to be spent with cats alone in a small apartment but I just don't work like that. We are friends and that is not going to change just because this project is over. I'm sure of it.

* * *

_BPOV_

I flopped on the bed, exhausted from the day's events. Spending the day carrying the baby around and trying to calm him in his fits is not really fun. The only nice times I have with that devil spawn are moments where I play with him and the sound of his delicious laughter- so much like a baby's – reaches my ears.

It was currently Edward's shift so I decided to catch up on some much needed sleep. Damn baby kept me awake all of last night. Without further ado I slip into unconsciousness lying face first on the pillows and still fully dressed.

I was roused from my slumber by the bed sinking down. I vaguely saw Edward lying down on the other side, probably exhausted since he was snoring within seconds. I stared at his face for the moment, illuminated by the moonlight.

I memorized it for a moment. Exhaustion or not, I didn't know if I'll get another chance like this. I'll miss him and the others when the project is over. I've already accepted the fact that we were just friends and even that plug could be pulled. It doesn't matter if he never asks me out again; I just want to see his face everyday even from a distance.

I really hate thinking of these thoughts. They just make me much more depressed than I already am. I look at his peaceful face one more time, close my eyes and fell asleep.

* * *

"I can't take nine more of these agonizing days! I've already learned my lesson. Can't they just get the babies for a while? I'm exhausted!" Alice groaned with her face in her hands.

"I agree. I'm so tired I could sleep standing up. I'm not too fond of Nathan right now. The thing peed on me while I was changing his diapers!" Emmett muttered.

We were all so exhausted to even laugh and tease him. Some of us also suffered the same fate so we can empathize. We were in the gymnasium with the other students and everyone around us looked as tired as we felt. Certainly, no one felt like shouting 'TGIF'.

"Everyone please sit down. We've had a change of schedule." Mrs. Bryans announced. "It seems that the principal has been getting calls from parents about how they too cannot sleep when the babies are crying in the middle of the night. We have decided to cut your time with them short."

There was a collective sigh of relief from the students. I, too, was thanking the parents in my head. I don't want a repeat of last night.

_Flashback_

_I woke up to the baby crying _again _for the umpteenth time this night. I stood up groggily from the bed and approached the crib where the baby was sleeping. _

_I was half asleep so I cannot be held accountable for what I did. I picked the baby up and in an attempt to check if he pooped, I put my nose flat on the diaper and sniffed. _

_There was no smell so pooped is checked off the list. I put the baby back down and went to get the bottle. It was empty so I went to the kitchen in my sleepy state and grabbed the jug of orange juice and poured it in the bottle not really knowing what I was doing. _

_Fortunately, I didn't trip on my way up the stairs to our room. I set the bottle down on a table and picked the baby up. I fed him the orange juice and he didn't really seem to mind it much. _

_I placed him back in the crib once he was done and he wailed again. I groaned and realized that I still needed to burp him. I grabbed him and closed my eyes and patted his back. _

_Suddenly, a pool of goo spilled on my feet and the floor. My eyes shot open and I realized that I was holding the baby upside-down and that he burped up the orange juice that I fed him. _

"You will all return the babies on Monday- " a collective groan followed this nevertheless Mrs. Bryans continued speaking like she hadn't been interrupted, "- and you will get your grown up child. The children will only be three to five years of age so I want to remind you to take _good _care of them and never let them out of your sight."

"I'll see you all on Monday and enjoy your weekend." She smiled and left the gymnasium. The irony was not lost to the students who have functioning brains.

It was Edward's turn to take care of the baby today. We made an agreement about the alternation of caring for the baby. We were organized unlike Alice and Jasper where Alice would always rope Jasper into giving up more time in taking care of the baby than her or Rosalie and Emmett who were constantly bickering about who was going to change the diapers.

Emma -who was Alice and Jasper's baby- started crying in Jasper's arms and Alice snatched her up and tried to calm her down. She grabbed the diaper and felt around if there was poop and confirmed that her diaper needed to be changed.

"Whose turn is it?" Jasper asked. Alice shrugged and passed the baby to Jasper and grinned apologetically. He just sighed and headed to the bathroom. Everyone followed him there and we all stood outside to wait for him.

"Two more days until this is over." Rosalie commented in a conversational tone.

"Two days of getting woken from a wonderful dream; two days of changing a robot's diaper; two days of burping the thing and having its oral discharge on your clothes; two days of getting peed on while you change its bloody diaper; TWO MORE FREAKING DAYS!" Emmett humorlessly laughed with a manic glint in his eyes.

Emmett has been acting strange all day. He was quiet and he looked like he hasn't slept in two days. Now, he's rocking on his heels back and forth while rubbing his hands together. We just stared at him with our mouths agape and he suddenly shifted from being creepy to his normal self.

I guess everyone just needs a moment of mental breakdown. Oh, well.

"SHIT!" Jasper's voice came floating from the bathroom door. We all rushed inside to check what's wrong even though the bathroom was for males.

"What happened? What's wrong?" Alice frantically asked. Jasper was holding the dirty diaper on one hand and on the other he held an empty diaper bag.

"Do you guys have any more diapers you can spare?" Jasper asked helplessly. Man that guy is whipped!

"Sorry, Carlie already used all we had." I apologized and shrugged my shoulders. He looked to Emmett but Emmett replied that he forgot to bring extras and he was fortunate enough that day since Nathan didn't need to change.

"What are we going to do?" Alice asked in worry.

"Why don't you give her your scarf and Jasper can make it into an improvised diaper." Rosalie jokingly recommended. Alice didn't seem to take it as a joke. She looked like she was really considering this.

"Okay," she nodded her head in consent, "here Jasper, use it for her. It's last season anyway."

I never really thought I'd see the day when Alice Cullen will crack. Looks like the odds are in my favor. She was going crazy. I admit, she was crazy before but this is a new kind of crazy. Alice definitely took it to a new level.

I was not the only one dumbfounded by what she did. Edward, Emmett, Jasper and Rosalie were all looking at her incredulously. Anyone who knew Alice would know that she had a high regard for clothes. She believes that clothes shelter our bodies and beautify us; hence, it shall not be treated with nonchalance.

"Come on then!" She snapped at Jasper who was still looking at her, dumbstruck. He snapped out of his stupor and accepted the scarf that Alice was waving in his face. He constructed a makeshift diaper in just minutes, and then we were all ready to go.

* * *

"What are you guys doing today?" I asked as I carried Carlie down the stairs. Everyone, including Carlisle and Esme, were sitting at the sofa, cooing at their babies.

"We decided to just stay in. I really don't want to tire myself out with Nathan." Rosalie replied from her position on the sofa. She was cradling the baby while Emmett was making ridiculous faces to get the baby to laugh.

"How about you, Al?" I occupied the armchair by the sofa while Edward just sat on the carpet in front of me. Alice was blowing raspberries at the baby's stomach and Emma was giggling happily.

"We're going to stay in too and play with our daughter." Alice smiled through her tired expression. I shrugged and said, "Suit yourself. Edward and I are going to the park and play with Carlie there. You can catch up later if you change your minds."

"Let's go Bells." Edward said as he stood up from his seat on the fluffy carpet. I nodded as he slung the baby bag over his shoulder. We headed out and made our way to the park. I just hope it doesn't rain.

We stopped at the local park. It had a playground on the side and benches placed around under the trees. Not many people were there. There were just a couple of kids playing in the sandbox and some elderly couples enjoying the rare appearance of the sun.

We sat down on a bench under a big oak tree. Its branches create shadows to dance across our faces as we look up at the sky. I was cradling Carlie close to my heart. Surprisingly, she was very quiet.

We just sat there and enjoyed the fresh air and the sunlight. Carlie would make little noises sometimes to indicate that she was hungry. Every time, Edward would be the one to feed her and he would coo at her while holding the bottle to her lips. It was simply adorable to watch.

A little girl in pigtails ran to us with her dress swishing behind her.

"Hello," she said, "Is that your baby?" She was smiling at the bundle I carried in my arms and before I could answer her Edward spoke.

"Yes, she is our baby. Why do you ask miss?" The girl blushed and looked down shyly. "I wanted to play with her, if you don't mind," she muttered almost inaudibly.

"What's your name first? I wouldn't want a stranger to play with my baby now, would I?" Edward teased lightly. The little girl smiled widely and answered, "My name is Anne. What's yours?"

"I am Edward, "he replied while gesturing to himself, "and this is Bella," he pointed to me. "This is our baby, Carlie." He pointed at the baby and smiled at Anne.

I passed Carlie on to Edward and he and Anne played with her. I watched them having fun and thought that Edward was really good with kids. I wouldn't be surprised if he became a pediatrician some day.

He was great with Anne. He told jokes that would earn giggles from her. He would let Anne hold Carlie and watch as Anne's face split in a grin as she felt like a grown up with the responsibility of a child's life in her hands even if the child was not really alive. I felt my heart swell with an emotion that I couldn't quite name.

* * *

_STRANGER'S POV_

I watched as a young couple and their baby sat down on one of the park benches. I was sitting on the opposite side of the park with my husband of 50 years. We were –and still are- happily married with a daughter. Our grandchild was playing on the swings by herself and I watched as her pigtails swung behind her.

I turned to look at the young couple again and saw the man feeding the baby and making faces at him as his partner stared adoringly at his side. It was a wonderful sight to behold. They look so perfect together with their baby. It was the epitome of a perfect family spending the day in the park.

The young girl was beautiful. She had long dark hair that went past her shoulders but I couldn't quite make out the color of her eyes from the distance. Nevertheless, I'm positive they are gorgeous. Her partner also looked handsome. He was very tall and had a red brown color to his hair. I'm not so sure. My eyes can't see that clearly.

I watched as my granddaughter ran to the young couple and speak to them. I nudged my husband and nodded in their direction. He, too, smiled as he watched the young couple interact with our grandchild.

I looked on fondly as she giggled at something the young man said and smiled wider when he let her hold their baby. Not many people would allow a child such a privilege for fear of the baby getting dropped but the man seemed to trust Anne –my granddaughter- right away.

I watched them for a few hours with my husband. The sky darkened gradually and the sunlight was cut off from the combination of night and rain clouds. Anne ran back to us with the huge smile on her face that I relished. She looked just like her mother did when she was her age.

"Grandma! Grandpa! I made friends with three people today!" She squealed excitedly as she sat down between me and my husband.

"Oh, did you? Who were they?" I asked interestedly. She related her whole encounter with them animatedly. She said that they were Edward, Bella and Carlie. Carlie was a cute baby and Edward and Bella were really nice. She told me that Edward and Bella weren't really together. They were just taking care of the baby for a project. She was so happy that I couldn't help but smile too.

"Will they ever be together? They look perfect for each other!" Anne exclaimed.

I looked to my husband and some sort of understanding passed between us. We both nodded our heads at her and I said, "Yes. I think they'll be together. Some day, they will be. Not just now."

Her grin stretched wider at my response and we all headed home to rest.

* * *

_BPOV_

It's Sunday today. This is our last day with our babies. Edward and I decided to just stay in with the rest of the Cullens.

"Good morning!" Alice chirped, carrying Emma down the stairs. "I just had a fantastic idea!"

"What is this 'fantastic idea' may I ask?" I was playing with Carlie. I waved her rattle in front of her and she squealed in her not-so-human voice.

"Why don't we dress the babies up and take pictures of them in various backgrounds. We don't have to go outside. We could just make them here in the house!" Alice squealed in excitement.

There was a chorus of SUREs and WHY NOTs. I just answered with a shrug of my shoulders. "I'll get the outfits!" Alice chirped happily.

Alice dressed Carlie as a bird and we took pictures of her with a background of a sky behind her. It wasn't exactly behind her since she was lying down with the background designed on the floor. Still, she looked adorable for an android baby designed to make our lives miserable.

Next, Alice suited Emma up as a koala with a background of hills and a tree beside her. The background was composed mainly of fabrics and other clothes styled to get the desired effect. The Cullens were very artistic.

After Emma, Nathan wore a bunny costume which made him look pretty adorable. He had a background of trees and flowers and he really did look cute. We spent the whole afternoon doing this and even dressing up ourselves.

At the end of the day, I suddenly found myself wishing that I would have a baby to dress up and play with. Too bad, I have to give back my baby tomorrow.

* * *

"I'm going to miss Nathan." Emmett sniffled as he watched Rosalie hand over their baby to the volunteer who haphazardly threw it in a box.

"You should take more care in handling them you little twerp!" He shouted at the guy. The volunteer's eyes widened and he nodded his head and hurriedly organized the babies in the box.

"I'm going to miss him too." Rosalie admitted sadly. It's really ironic how just two days ago we couldn't wait for the babies to be out of our hands.

"I'm going to miss Emma!" Alice wailed. "Me too." Jasper nodded his head as he handed over Emma to the volunteer who took care in putting the baby in the box.

"As hard as it is, I really have to give you back Carlie." I spoke to the baby and kissed its forehead. "Bye."

"I'll miss you Carlie. Bye." Edward said over my shoulder as I handed her over to the volunteer. We all joined the other students sitting at the bleachers. Apparently, we were the only people who would actually miss the babies apart from Angela and Ben.

"Since most of you will not miss the android babies, let's go meet your children." Mrs. Bryans smiled and waved over a group of children at the side of the gym. They all came walking up in single file. There were a lot of them.

"When I call out your name, come on down and meet your child." Mrs. Bryans started calling out pairs and introducing them to their child. Finally it was our turn to meet our child. We were the last one and we saw a little girl standing beside a woman, staring at her feet.

"This is Vanessa. She's a little shy but she'll warm up to you soon. I'm Ms. Brown, the owner of the orphanage. Here is her suitcase and some of her other belongings." She smiled kindly and handed Edward the things while I approached Vanessa and introduced myself.

I stooped down on her eye level and said, "Hello! I'm Bella. It's nice to meet you. You must be Vanessa. Would you like me to call you anything else?"

"Nessie. Please call me Nessie," she whispered softly. She was really cute with her bangs almost covering her eyes. She had the same color of hair as Edward's and the same color of eyes as me.

"Nessie it is," Edward agreed and he also stooped down beside me to look Nessie in the eyes, "I'm Edward but you can call me Dad."

"I would like that very much." She nodded her head eagerly at his suggestion. I smiled and said, "You can call me Mom if you would prefer also."

Edward looked at me and grinned. I smiled back and Nessie finally met our gazes. "Welcome to the family, Nessie." The two of us said simultaneously.

* * *

_**A/N: Sorry if I don't get the chance to reply to your reviews but I still hope you leave some. **_


	9. Author's Note

**I am **_**extremely **_**sorry! I know that I've abandoned this story and I'm really **_**really**_** sorry about that. Anyway, if anyone would like to take over and adopt this story, by all means, do take it. I really am sorry. I've been swamped with school work and I don't see myself actually finishing this story. If anyone would like to use the plotline then please do. Again, I am deeply sorry. I wrote this story two years ago and I find that I'm not the same person I was when I started it. Hopefully, my grammar is one of the things that have changed for the better. ;)**


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